Stories
Central Railway to Intensify Ticket Checks from October 1: Carry Original ID or Face Penalties
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CNBC TV18•29-09-2026, 09:00
Central Railway to Intensify Ticket Checks from October 1: Carry Original ID or Face Penalties
- •Central Railway will conduct a month-long ticket-checking drive from October 1 to October 31, 2026, across its network, including stations and trains.
- •Passengers failing to produce the required original ID for their ticket, especially those booked under concessional fares, quotas, or passes, will be treated as traveling without a valid ticket.
- •The drive aims to curb misuse of reservation facilities, fraudulent use of concessions, and prevent revenue loss for the railway, particularly before the festival season.
- •Accepted original IDs include Aadhaar, passport, voter ID, PAN card, driving license, government-issued photo ID, student ID, nationalized bank passbook with photo, and credit card with laminated photo.
- •The minimum penalty for traveling without a valid ticket has doubled from ₹250 to ₹500 under the Jan Vishwas Act, 2026, effective June 20, 2026.
Key Questions Answered
Central Railway is running a special ticket-checking drive across its network from October 1 to October 31, 2026, ahead of the festival season.
If a single ticket is booked for multiple passengers and at least one named passenger fails to carry the prescribed original identity proof, all passengers on that ticket will be treated as traveling without a valid ticket.
Under the Jan Vishwas Act, 2026, which took effect on June 20, 2026, the minimum penalty under Sections 137 and 138 of the Railway Act, 1989, doubled from ₹250 to ₹500.
