No concession for patients suffering from arthritis: Railways
NEW DELHI: The railways on Wednesday said it had no quota for patients suffering from arthritis and no plans of offering any concession in passenger fare for them as it was already losing revenue over the discounts granted in over 50 categories.
In a reply to a question from Satyapal Singh, Minister of State for Human Resource Development (Higher Education), Rajan Gohain, MOS, Railways said in Lok Sabha that patients suffering from arthritis can book a berth of their choice (lower berth in this case) on first come-first serve basis.
“There is no reservation quota earmarked for patients suffering from arthritis... There is no provision for concession in passenger fare for patients suffering from arthritis”, Gohain said. Singh who is a former police commissioner of Mumbai and a BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat, also asked the minister why such concession was not given to patients suffering from arthritis. “Railways are losing substantial revenue on account of concessions granted to more than 50 categories of passengers. Keeping in view the financial constraints on railways, the scope of concession is not being enlarged,” the minister said.
The railways offers concession in fares in 53 categories, including for those with physical and mental disabilities, people suffering from cancer, tuberculosis, thalassemia, senior citizens, farmers, awardees. NEW DELHI: The Indian Railways is considering to install CCTV cameras in trains, including in premium trains such as Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi, the government informed Parliament on Wednesday.
“It is under consideration to install CCTV cameras in nearly 58,000 coaches of suburban, passenger and mail/express trains including superfast and premium trains like Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi,” Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha. Gohain said that while policing is a state subject, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) supplements the efforts of the Government Railway Police (GRP) and the district police. The minister said that on vulnerable and identified routes/sections, 2,500 trains - on an average - are escorted by the RPF daily, in addition to 2,200 trains escorted by the GRP of different states daily.