Attention Mumbai local train commuters. The Western Railway (WR) said it developed two mobile applications to enhance safety of passengers during train travel. The Railways said these apps will check fake ticket and customer service on long-distance trains. The first app is in the beta testing phase and will be designed to assist ticket-checking staff in verifying the tickets.
First app to check fake tickets
After scanning details such as the UTS number, mobile number, and other ticket information, the app will cross-reference the data with the railway's system.
Then, the app will detect fake tickets as there have been multiple instances of passengers using fake QR codes to generate fraudulent tickets, particularly during peak hours.
The Railways said that the ticket-checking staff have been asked to download the app on their mobile phones and the implementation of the app is being done in batches, along with training sessions. The training will help in identifying passengers travelling with fake mobile tickets, which was otherwise difficult to detect.
Second app to check passenger complaints
The Railways said the second app is being designed to resolve passenger complaints. The train passengers currently are reporting complaints via the 139 helpline or the Rail Madad app. But with the new app, the ticket supervisor of each long-distance train will have direct access to contact details for staff responsible for handling specific complaints.
While the chief ticket inspector will be the primary contact point for resolving issues such as unclean toilets, water leakage, soiled linen, and food or air conditioning problems. The train captain will be able to access important contact numbers through the app and then will address complaints.
Apart from streamlining passenger complaints, the app system will allow both the train captain and the rail control room to have access to the details of on-board staff.
These apps have already been implemented on premium trains such as Vande Bharat, Rajdhani, and Shatabdi. With these apps, the performance of contractual staff involved in services like cleaning, catering, and providing linens on long-distance trains can also be monitored.