24 touts arrested in raids conducted by WR’s special teams in Operation Tatkal

317 tickets seized worth Rs 6.28 lakh

To curb touting activities during the festive season special teams of
Western Railway conduct surprise checks and arrested people involved in such
activities. The teams arrested 24 touts and seized 317 tickets worth 6.28 lakh
in raids conducted at various stations.

WR’s special teams of dedicated staff from RPF’s Crime branch under
Operation Tatkal conduct checks in Mumbai, Surat, Indore, Vadodara, Ujain,
Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Ratlam and other stations. These raids were conducted to
curb touting activities by unscrupulous elements in view of complaints against
touts regarding misuse and blocking of tatkal for higher premium from innocent
passengers due to gap in demand and supply in festivals season and vacations.
Till now total 432 touts were arrested  and 6623 tickets worth Rs 1.66 Cr
have been seized from touts in various drives against touts during the year
2019.

According to a press release issued by WR CPRO Ravinder Bhakar, further
data are being retrieved from Seized PCs/ Laptops, which may lead to further
Seizures of e-tickets. It is pertinent to mention that touts are booking
tickets by using different fake IDs.

Passengers and citizens have been alerted by WR against the various
modus operandi of touts through PA system, pasting of sticker/poster,
distributing pamphlets in train and premises. Awareness campaigns have also
been organized by WR to educate the passengers regarding the legal provisions
of section 143 of Railways Act & consequences of buying tickets/ e-tickets
from touts. Such drives will be regularly  planned in future by RPF
against touts as commitment to passengers from WR.