The train ticket you will book for your next journey might cost you a little less as the government reportedly is mulling over removing the merchant discount rate (MDR) charges.

Banks charge MDR to the merchant for providing debit and credit card services. The merchant sets up a service with the bank and charges a predetermined rate on the card transactions.

In an interview to TV channel on Thursday, CNBC-TV18, the Railway Minister Piyush Goyal said that the discussions are on with the banks over MDR charges.

“Railways used to charge a service charge. Post demonetisation they removed that service charge and we saw digital transactions really shoot up. Now the only charge that is charges is the merchant discount rate (MDR). I am now engaged with bankers to see what we can do about that MDR also,” Goyal said.

Since May, IRCTC and the banks have been trying to come to an accord over the distribution of fees on online booking of rail tickets.

RBI had earlier lowered MDR charges on payments made through debit cards to 0.25 per cent for payment up to Rs 1,000.

Piyush Goyal also said that the government will “very soon” float a global tender to procure tracks for modernising the railways, which can create a million jobs within a year through various areas across its ecosystem.

“I have diverted all available tracks to track renewal so that we can make the existing tracks safer. We are looking to go in for global procurement of rail tracks…this will help fast track the doubling of lines and new projects,” he told reporters at the India Economic Summit of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Asked by when the global tender for tracks modernisation would be floated, Goyal said “very soon, it’s under process”.

The Railway Ministry has asked its senior staff to slug it out – at home and at work – as part of steps to end the VIP culture in India’s national transporter.

In an unprecedented move, the ministry has brought to an end a 36-year-old protocol where it was mandatory for general managers to present themselves on arrival and departure of the Railway Board chairman and other board members during zonal visits.

As part of a massive overhaul of the culture of privilege prevalent in the ministry, the Railway Board has decided to do away with the instructions of a 1981 circular that mandated such protocol.

In an order on September 28, the ministry said that the instructions and guidelines issued to the railways regarding the protocol to be observed at airports and railway stations during the visit of the Railway Board chairman and other board members stand withdrawn with immediate effect.

Railway Board chairman Ashwani Lohani said no official will entertain bouquets and gifts at any time.

However, it’s not just in the office that senior officials of the national carrier have to exercise restraint, but also at home. All senior officials have to relieve all the railway staff who have been engaged as domestic help in their homes.

Officials say that around 30,000 trackmen work at the homes of senior officials. They have been asked to resume duties. Sources in the ministry say that in the past one month around 6,000-7,000 personnel have reported back to work.

“No one will be exempt from the directive to rejoin work except under very special circumstances. We are hoping that all the staff will join work shortly,” a senior official of the ministry said.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has also asked senior officials to give up travelling in cosy saloons and executive class travel privileges and start travelling in Sleeper and AC Three-tier classes, mingling with other passengers.

These include members of the Railway Board, general managers of railway zones and divisional railway managers in each of the 50 divisions.

“I believe that when these protocols were in place, people drafting them would have seen some reasoning behind them. It is difficult for me to say what they were though. However, now, these have no logic.

“Also, there is a tendency in public organisations to not review protocols which have become archaic, but remain part of the dos and don’ts for officials. They should be reviewed on a regular basis,” said a former railway board member who didn’t want to be quoted.

Tejashwi Yadav, son of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, was grilled for about nine hours by the Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday in connection with its money laundering probe in the railway hotels allotment corruption case.

The former Bihar deputy chief minister arrived at the central probe agency’s office in New Delhi at about 12 noon and left after 9 pm, officials said.

They said at least 40 questions were put across Tejashwi Yadav and that the investigating officer recorded his answers.

The agency is expected to record the statement of Tejashwi Yadav’s mother and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi on Wednesday.

The CBI had recently recorded the statement of Tejashwi and Lalu Prasad in the case.

The Enforcement Directorate had registered a criminal case against Lalu Prasad’s family members and others under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), sometime back.

It had earlier questioned a few people in this case, including the wife of former UPA minister P C Gupta.

The agency had taken cognisance of a CBI FIR in this regard to initiate its own criminal complaint.

In July, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had registered a criminal FIR and conducted multiple searches against Lalu Prasad and others.

The Enforcement Directorate will investigate the alleged “proceeds of crime” generated by the accused, purportedly through shell companies, officials had said.

Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, and others will be probed by the agency under charges filed in the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR), the ED equivalent of a police FIR.

The case dates back to the time when Lalu Yadav was the railway minister in the UPA government.

in the CBI FIR include Vijay Kochhar, Vinay Kochhar (both directors of Sujata Hotels), Delight Marketing company, now known as Lara Projects, and then IRCTC managing director P K Goel.

The FIR alleges that Lalu Prasad, as railway minister, handed over the maintenance of two IRCTC hotels to a company after receiving a bribe in the form of prime land in Patna through a ‘benami’ company owned by Sarla Gupta.

The FIR was registered on July 5 in connection with favours allegedly extended to Sujata Hotels in awarding a contract for the upkeep of hotels in Ranchi and Puri and receiving premium land as ‘quid pro quo’.

The Enforcement Directorate, under the PMLA, has powers to attach and confiscate tainted assets and it is expected that the agency will initiate such a move once it makes progress in the case.

Not just railway officials but their wives too have now been asked to avoid ostentation.

The Railway Women’s Welfare Organisation (RWWO) president, Arunima Lohani, the wife of Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani, has issued an advisory to RWWO members to avoid splurging, days after railway officials were asked to put an end to the VIP culture.

Ms Arunima Lohani, in the October 3 letter, asked members of the RWWO to avoid floral decorations during meetings and barred the presentation of mementos and gifts to anyone using the organisation’s funds.

She has also said that expenditure incurred towards refreshments served during such meetings should be met from the subscription collected by the RWWO.

“Farewell may be given to RWWO volunteers on the occasion of retirement only and not transfers. In case of president or senior members or executive members, the expenditure towards souvenir should not exceed Rs. 2,000. RWWO’s money should not be spent on celebration of birthdays and anniversaries of any member,” the letter reads.

An official in the know of the working of the organisation said that it was for the first time that such a letter had been issued by any president.

“For the first time, there will be some kind of accounting of the finances of the organisation. Huge amount of money was spent on farewell and parties previously,” the official said.

In an order on September 28, the Railway Board chairman brought to an end a 36-year-old protocol where it was mandatory for general managers to present themselves on arrival and departure of the Railway Board chairman and other board members during zonal visits.

Mr Ashwani Lohani also said no official would accept bouquets and gifts.

The RWWO president called for a level of accountability from office-bearers and stated that all funds collected through subscription should be deposited in the organisation’s bank account. She also stated that except for the limited cash required for day-to-day expenses, money belonging to the organisation should not be kept with any office-bearer.

She also said that a maximum tenure of three years for holding the posts of treasurer and secretary of the organisation should be strictly adhered to.

The RWWO functioning at zonal and divisional levels of the Indian Railways is engaged in various activities related to the welfare of railwaymen and their families. The organisation also runs creches, schools and training centres.

It was no ordinary train ride for a 26-year-old pregnant woman. She delivered a baby inside a ladies’ coach last night. The fast local, headed for Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai, was somewhere near Dadar when Salma Shaikh went into labour. On seeing her condition, fellow passengers tried to calm her down and informed the railway police. A doctor and support staff from One Rupee Clinic on Dadar station rushed to help her.

A quick examination revealed that the baby was crowning so there was no time to take Salma to a hospital. Dr Prajwaleet Kambli then decided to perform the delivery inside the ladies compartment. The mother and her newborn girl were shifted to the nearby KEM hospital. Both are stable now.

Nurse Sanjeevani Padwal, who assisted the doctor, said she had never seen anything of this sort. “We thought we will just help her get to the platform so that she can be taken to the hospital in an ambulance, but by then it was too late.”

Two months ago, another woman delivered a baby in a local train with the help of One Rupee Clinic staff at Ghatkopar Station.

To provide prompt and affordable medical assistance, the Central Railways in Mumbai had started “One Rupee Clinics” at many stations across Mumbai. The first clinic was opened at Ghatkopar railway station on May 10, 2017. Officials say that the move is benefiting passengers during medical exigencies. While the consultation fee at these clinics is Re 1, a blood pressure check-up is done free of cost. The charges for other tests are affordable.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s son Tejaswi Yadav today appeared before the CBI in connection with the ongoing probe into the 2006 IRCTC hotel case.

CBI spokesperson Abhishek Dayal told IANS that Tejaswi was being questioned at the CBI headquarters in New Delhi.

The questioning comes a day after Lalu Prasad was questioned for seven hours in connection with the case.

The CBI had on September 26 issued fresh summons — the third in a month — to the RJD chief and his son in the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp (IRCTC) contract case.

The contracts were given to Sujata Hotels, a company owned by Vijay and Vinay Kochhar allegedly in lieu of bribe in the form of a plot of prime land in Bihar, the CBI said.

Railway offices and trains will now smell like pine and lemongrass as Minister Piyush Goyal’s objection to the “unpleasant peculiar smell” there has prompted the railway board to change the deodoriser-cum- disinfectant used by the national carrier.

The railway board on Thursday said that the need to use better odour-cum-disinfectant fluids in railway offices and trains was stressed by the railway minister.

The circular also suggested that an alternative material deodorising-cum-disinfectant fluid having some pure strained “absolute essential oil like pine, lemongrass or any other essential oil having pleasant odour”, which was being used in some sections of the railways, should be considered.

The board said that it has decided that all fresh procurement of disinfectant should be of the alternative kind for all railway locations requiring such disinfectants. So, railway offices, hospitals, stations, coaching depots and trains are likely to soon smell of pine and lemongrass.

The railway ministry has asked its senior staff to slug it out — at home and at work — as part of steps to end the VIP culture in India’s national transporter. The ministry has brought to an end a 36-year-old protocol where it was mandatory for general managers to be present on arrival and departure of the Railway Board chairman and other board members during zonal visits.

In an order on September 28, the ministry said that the guidelines regarding the protocol to be observed at airports and railway stations stand withdrawn with immediate effect.

“No one will be exempt from the directive to rejoin work except under very special circumstances. We are hoping that all the staff will join work shortly,” a senior official of the ministry said.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal has also asked senior officials to give up travelling in cosy saloons and executive class travel privileges and start travelling in Sleeper and AC Three-tier classes and mingle with passengers. These include members of the Railway Board, general managers of railway zones and divisional railway managers in each of the 50 divisions.

“I believe that when these protocols were in place, people drafting them would have seen some reasoning behind them. It is difficult for me to say what they were though. However, now, these have no logic,” said a former railway board member.

A small dilapidated tea kiosk has now been spruced up and decked up with flowers. Right next to it a small photography exhibition and a coffee shop lookalike have been set up. Welcome to Vadnagar railway station, some 100 kilometres from Ahmedabad.

The railway station, till a few months back, was just a small metre gauge station but the work on broad gauge conversion has started. At the platform, ahead of PM Modi’s visit, a photography exhibition giving insight into the life of a young PM Modi when he sold tea has been put up.

Outside the railway station, a chai pe charcha halting point to highlight PM Modi’s campaign with the same name has been set up.

Barely a kilometre away is a multi-speciality hospital which the Prime Minister will inaugurate. It was built at a cost of Rs. 400 crore.

Yesterday, back in Gujarat where he had laid the foundation stone for the bullet train last month, PM Modi also took a quick swipe at te many critics of the Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed train being built.

Speaking at a function to formally dedicate the IIT Gandhinagar building to the nation, PM Modi recalled that he had, as Chief Minister of Gujarat, allotted 400 acres in the state capital for its campus in 2011.

Had this decision to allot land been announced during elections, “some people would have gone all out to criticise me… the way they criticise bullet trains these days”, PM Modi said, suggesting that much of the criticism that he had faced over the high-speed train was linked the Gujarat elections scheduled for last this year.

IRCTC or Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation, the e-ticket service provider for Indian Railways, says e-tickets – or tickets booked online – can be cancelled online till chart preparation. E-ticket cancellations are not allowed at railway counters. For trains starting up to 12 noon, chart preparation is usually done the previous night, according to the IRCTC website – irctc.co.in. Cancellation would be confirmed online and the refund would be credited back to the account used for booking online tickets. If there is any partial cancellation of ticket, please ensure that a fresh e-reservation slip (electronic reservation slip) is printed separately as done for the original ticket, the IRCTC website adds.

Train Ticket Cancellation, Refund Rules:

1) If a confirmed ticket is cancelled up to 48 hours before the scheduled departure of train, ticket cancellation charges will be deducted – Rs. 240 for AC First Class/Executive Class, Rs. 200 for AC 2 Tier/First Class, Rs. 180 for AC 3 Tier/AC Chair car/ AC 3 Economy, Rs.120 for Sleeper Class and Rs.60 for Second Class. Cancellation charges are levied on a per passenger basis.

2) If a confirmed ticket is cancelled within 48 hours and up to 12 hours before the scheduled departure of train, ticket cancellation charges will be 25 per cent of the fare subject to the minimum flat rate mentioned above.

Cancellation of Wait-Listed, RAC Tickets

4) A refund will be granted on an RAC (reservation against cancellation) ticket or wait-listed tickets up to 30 minutes before the departure of train.

5) The e-tickets should be cancelled through internet and the refund of fare will be credited to the account from which the booking transaction took place, after deducting the applicable ticket cancellation charges.

6) No cancellation charge is levied and full fare is refunded to passengers holding confirmed, RAC and wait-listed tickets if the journey is not undertaken due to late running of train by more than three hours of scheduled departure, subject to the condition that the ticket is surrendered prior to actual departure of train.

7) In case of cancellation of trains, for e-tickets, an automatic refund is granted. Filing of TDR or ticket deposit receipt is not required.

8) For a PRS (Passenger Reservation System) counter ticket, in case of train cancellation, a refund is permissible within three days excluding the scheduled day of departure of train.

Cancellation Of Tatkal Ticket

9) Under the existing rules, no refund is granted on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal tickets. If a train is running late by more than 3 hours or train is cancelled, you can file TDR with proper reason for claiming refund, says the IRCTC website.

10) In case of e-ticket issued for travel of more than one passenger, some passengers have confirmed reservation and others are on RAC or waiting list, full refund of fare less clerkage, shall be admissible for confirmed passengers, subject to the condition that the ticket shall be cancelled online or online TDR shall be filed for all the passengers up to thirty minutes before the scheduled departure of the train, says IRCTC website. Other details about rules on railway cancellation and refund can be checked in this notification.