Poll Analysis | Bribe Instead of Fine for Traveling without an ID Proof
To curb misuse of tickets by touts and travellers, Indian Railways made it mandatory for travellers to carry their ID proofs and this applies especially for upper class travellers, failing which a fine would be charged as per rules. Moreover, a traveller not carrying an ID proof will be considered a ticketless traveller.
Travelling Ticket Examiners take advantage of this and charge an amount that exceeds the stipulated fine amount. For instance, an individual from New Delhi paid Rs.3000 without receiving a receipt in exchange.
I Paid a Bribe conducted a poll asking our readers, “Have you bribed a Railway TTE for travelling without a relevant ID proof?” A majority of the respondents (59%) have not faced such a situation, while 37% of our readers unfortunately had to pay a bribe. The remaining 6% resisted paying one.
Documents such as voter photo identity card, passport, PAN card, driving licence, any photo identity card having serial number issued by central/state government, any photo identity card with photograph issued by recognized school/college, nationalized bank passbook with photograph, credit cards issued by banks with laminated photograph and Unique Identification Card 'Aadhaar' are considered as valid documents to carry.
A fine will be imposed on passengers travelling without any of the above mentioned ID proofs. In some cases, they can also be asked to get off the train.