BANGALORE: The Indian Railways – that gigantic organization that forms an integral part of the country’s economic and social support system – is In the South Western Railways’ Bangalore Division alone, the scheme is a major favourite with passengers.
Statistics show that despite the limited number of Tatkal seats, in every consecutive month, along three major lines, the number of tickets in demand and those issued has always been higher, in some cases, almost double.
This, railways officials explain, is because when it comes to issuing tickets to those in the waiting list, passengers in the Tatkal waiting list are given first preference over general passengers. Tatkal tickets are available, at an additional fee, to passengers five days before the day of the journey.
South Western Railways charges Rs 150 for a sleeper class Tatkal ticket and Rs 200 additional fee, more than the actual fare, for 2nd class and 3rd classA/C coach.
Though the additional charges vary as per the peak season, officials add that there is a proposal to make the Tatkal fees uniform throughout the year. The peak season of April, May and June, including a bit of the Dasara rush, is when the railways see the highest demand for this service. Bangalore divisional railway manager Akhil Agrawal said the Karnataka Express that runs between Bangalore and New Delhi, is almost always booked completely.
In December 2008 alone, the seats confirmed under tatkal scheme were over 7,900, while the numbers of tickets available were a wee bit over 6,900 under the sleeper class alone. riding high on the revenue accrued through the Tatkal Seva scheme.
The railways make a tidy penny out of the service. Last year, the revenuegenerated from Tatkal scheme alone was over Rs 300 crore all over the country. Bangalore gets a fair chunk of it too. Several complaints of discrepancies and passengers being left in the lurch continue to make some noise. But the tatkal scheme continues to be that last resort to millions of rail travellers.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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