Indian Railways Unveils New Ticket, EPC and Freight Rules
Indian Railways introduces new ticket cancellation rules, EPC contract norms and freight reforms under its "52 reforms in 52 weeks" programme.
SociapaHQ
Indian Railways has announced a new set of operational and policy reforms related to infrastructure contracts, passenger ticketing and freight logistics as part of the Ministry of Railways' "52 reforms in 52 weeks" programme.
The measures are aimed at improving project execution, enhancing passenger convenience and increasing efficiency across the railway network.
One of the key reforms relates to the eligibility criteria for companies bidding for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) projects. Contractors will now have to demonstrate previous experience by carrying out similar work worth at least 20% of the value of the project they are bidding for.
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Passenger Reforms:
The ministry has also introduced a standard bid security of 2 percent of the project value. The government will also evaluate the execution capacity of bidders for projects valued at more than ₹10 crore before they can enter the tender process.
Indian Railways has come out with a revised policy for cancellation of tickets and refund to the passengers. Under the new system, passengers cancelling their tickets more than 72 hours before departure will only be charged the minimum prescribed cancellation charge.
Tickets cancelled between 72 hours and 24 hours prior to departure will be subject to 25% deduction of the fare, whilst cancellations between 24 hours and eight hours prior to departure will be refunded at 50%. Tickets cancelled within eight hours of the scheduled departure of the train will not be entitled to a refund.
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Passenger Convenience:
Railways has also made the process of cancelling counter booked tickets simple. Now, instead of returning to the station from where the booking was made, passengers can cancel such tickets at any railway reservation counter across the country.
Another passenger friendly initiative is that the travellers can change the boarding station up to 30 minutes before the departure of the train, instead of earlier deadline linked with the preparation of the reservation chart.
Indian Railways is planning to introduce single-stack and double-stack automobile waggons on the freight side to enhance vehicle transport for the automotive sector.
The ministry has also introduced special stainless steel containers for ferrying salt. Containers are designed to be top loaded and side unloaded. This helps reduce corrosion, water seepage and handling losses and improves multimodal logistics from production centres.
