New Delhi: In an effort to curb ticketless travel and generate additional non-fare revenue, Indian Railways has increased the penalty for passengers travelling without a valid train ticket.
The new rules kicked in fron Saturday.
Under the provisions of the Jan Vishwas Act, 2026, the minimum penalty under Sections 137 and 138 of the Railway Act, 1989, has been increased to Rs 500 with effect from June 20, 2026, Indian Railways said, as reported by The Indian Express.
“As per the provisions of the Jan Vishwas Act, 2026, the minimum penalty under Sections 137 & 138 of the Railway Act, 1989 has been increased from Rs 250 to Rs 500 with effect from 20 June 2026. Passengers are requested to travel with a valid ticket and follow railway rules to avoid penalties,” it said.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 1 of the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026 (8 of 2026), the Central Government hereby appoints the date of publication of this notification as the date on which the provisions of the said Act, in so far as it relates to serial number 52…the Railways Act, 1989 (24 of 1989) respectively, shall come into force,” the Ministry of Railways has said in a gazette notification issued on Friday.
According to the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026, serial number 52, for section 137, the following section shall be substituted, namely:
137. Fraudulently travelling or attempting to travel without proper pass or ticket.- (1) If any person, with intent to defraud a railway administration,-
(a) enters or remains in any carriage on a railway or travels in a train in contravention of section 55; or
(b) uses or attempts to use a single pass or a single ticket which has already been used on a previous journey, or in the case of a return ticket, a half thereof which has already been so used, he shall be liable to pay the fare for the distance which he has travelled, or where there is any doubt as to the station from which he started, the fare from the station from which the train originally started, or if the tickets of passengers travelling in the train have been examined since the original starting of the train, the fare from the place where the tickets were so examined or, in case of their having been examined more than once, were last examined:
Provided that he shall also pay the excess charges equal to the due charges mentioned herein, subject to a minimum of five hundred rupees or the charges notified by the Central Government.
(2) If any passenger liable to pay the excess charge and the fare mentioned in sub-section (1), fails or refuses to pay the same on a demand being made under this section, the authorised railway servant may apply to the competent court, for the recovery of the sum payable, and the court if satisfied that the sum is payable shall order it to be so recovered, and may order that the person liable for the payment shall in default of payment be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to five hundred rupees, or with both.”
