13 May,2026 09:31 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Central Railway stated that ticket checking operations were conducted across both suburban trains and Mail and Express services. Representational Pic/File
Central Railway has intensified its drive against unauthorised and ticketless travel, collecting Rs 40.85 crore in penalties from passengers travelling without valid tickets during April 2026.
According to railway officials, ticket checking teams detected 4.96 lakh passengers travelling without tickets or with improper travel authority during the month. This marks an increase of nearly 23 per cent compared to 4.04 lakh cases recorded in April last year.
Central Railway also reported a sharp rise in penalty collection. The railway administration recovered Rs 40.85 crore in April 2026 compared to Rs 25.03 crore collected during the same period last year, registering an increase of more than 63 per cent.
Officials said the intensified inspections were carried out as part of efforts to ensure safer, smoother and more comfortable travel for genuine passengers, Central Railway said.
Among all divisions, the Mumbai division recorded the highest number of ticketless travel cases and penalty collections.
Division-wise details for April 2026 are as follows:
- Mumbai division: Rs 16.13 crore recovered from 2.27 lakh cases
- Bhusaval division: Rs 12.23 crore recovered from 1.09 lakh cases
- Pune division: Rs 4.54 crore recovered from 0.52 lakh cases
- Nagpur division: Rs 3.92 crore recovered from 0.58 lakh cases
- Solapur division: Rs 1.45 crore recovered from 0.25 lakh cases
- Headquarters: Rs 2.58 crore recovered from 0.26 lakh cases
Central Railway stated that ticket checking operations were conducted across both suburban trains and Mail and Express services.
The Mumbai division currently operates 1,820 suburban train services daily, including 108 AC local services, while the Pune division runs 40 suburban services every day.
In the Mumbai division, out of the total 2.27 lakh cases detected, 1.34 lakh were suburban cases and 93,524 were non-suburban cases.
Out of the Rs 16.13 crore collected in penalties, Rs 6.64 crore came from suburban cases and Rs 9.49 crore came from non-suburban cases, officials said.
The railway administration also detected 12,698 cases involving unauthorised travel in AC local trains and recovered Rs 39.66 lakh in penalties from offenders.
In the Pune division, authorities detected 51,791 cases during April 2026.
Of these, 9,611 were suburban cases and 42,180 were non-suburban cases, officials said.
The division collected Rs 52 lakhs from suburban passengers and Rs 4.02 crore from non-suburban passengers, they said.
Central Railway has appealed to commuters to travel responsibly by purchasing proper and valid tickets before boarding trains.
Railway officials reiterated their zero-tolerance policy towards ticketless travel and said strict checking drives would continue to ensure a comfortable and dignified journey for passengers.
