Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw during the Parliament Winter Session said that train passengers must pay charges for carrying luggage beyond the prescribed free allowance. He clarified the class-wise limits, excess baggage charges, and rules for carrying large suitcases in compartments
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw speaks in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. Pic/PTI
Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, while speaking on the floor of the House during the Parliament Winter Session on Wednesday, informed the Lok Sabha that passengers need to pay charges for carrying luggage beyond the prescribed free allowance limits while travelling by train, news agency PTI reported.
He was responding to questions raised by MP Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy, who sought to know whether Railways would implement baggage regulations for train passengers on the lines of practice being followed at airports.
Vaishnaw, while filing a written reply at the lower house, stated, "At present, a class-wise maximum limit has been prescribed for the carriage of luggage by the passenger along with him/her inside the compartments."
The Union Railways Minister also presented a class-wise free allowance and maximum limits in a tabular format.
Class-wise luggage norms explained
According to the information shared by Vaishnaw, here's a breakdown of how much luggage a passenger can carry on different classes. While submitting a written reply, the minister asserted that passengers can carry a certain amount of weight without paying any extra sum. He also put a cap on the maximum weight of the luggage permissable onboard.
|
Class |
Maximum luggage weight without paying extra |
|
Second Class |
35 kg |
|
Sleeper Class |
40 kg |
|
AC-3 |
40 kg |
|
AC-2 |
50 kg |
|
AC-1 |
70 kg |
Vaishnaw, while highlighting the changes, also said that "the maximum limit includes free allowance", as cited by news agency PTI.
|
Class |
Maximum luggage that a passenger can carry |
|
Second Class |
70 kg |
|
Sleeper Class |
80 kg |
|
AC-3 |
40 kg |
|
AC-2 |
100 kg |
|
AC-1 |
150 kg |
The Union Minister added, "Passengers are allowed to book and carry excess luggage beyond the free allowance with him/her in the compartment up to the maximum limit as per class as tabulated above on payment of charges at 1.5 times the luggage rate.”
According to Vaishnaw, trunks, suitcases and boxes having outside measurements of 100 cm x 60 cm x 25 cm (length x breadth x height) are allowed to be carried in the passenger compartments as personal luggage.
The minister further clarified, "If the trunks, suitcases and boxes whose outside measurement exceeds any one of the dimensions, such articles are required to be booked and carried in the brakevan (SLRs)/parcel vans and not in the passengers' compartments."
He reiterated that the Railways' norms that excess luggage, over and above the prescribed limit, is carried in the brake van (SLRs) of the trains, subject to the maximum limit prescribed to be booked in brake vans as luggage.
(With inputs from PTI)
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