Central Railway has reported a significant surge in penalty collections from unauthorised and ticketless travel, recovering a substantial ₹140.81 crore between April and August 2026. This figure represents a more than 40% increase compared to the ₹100.50 crore collected during the same period last year.
The intensified crackdown led to the detection of 18.03 lakh passengers traveling without valid tickets, a rise from 17.19 lakh cases recorded in the corresponding five months of the previous year. The sharp uptick in earnings is primarily attributed to two key factors: a significant increase in ticket-checking drives across its network and the revision of the minimum penalty for ticketless travel, which doubled from ₹250 to ₹500.
Intensified Checking Drives and Festive Season Preparations
Swapnil Nila, a Central Railway spokesperson, indicated that authorities are stepping up checks even further in anticipation of a rise in passenger traffic during the upcoming festive season. These comprehensive enforcement measures include various strategies such as fortress checks, ambush inspections, station sweeps, and mega drives. These operations are conducted across all types of trains—mail, express, passenger, special, and suburban—particularly focusing on the bustling Mumbai and Pune divisions.
Divisional Performance in Penalty Collection
Among its various operational divisions, the Mumbai division emerged as the top contributor to the penalty revenue, collecting ₹58.46 crore from 8.80 lakh detected cases between April and August. The Bhusaval division followed, accumulating ₹35.52 crore from 3.42 lakh cases. Other significant contributions came from the Pune division (₹16.29 crore from 1.86 lakh cases), Nagpur division (₹15.83 crore from 2.11 lakh cases), and Solapur division (₹6.13 crore from approximately 95,000 cases).
The trend of increased collections continued into August 2026, with Central Railway gathering ₹19.5 crore, a 41% increase from the ₹13.78 crore collected in August 2025. Interestingly, the number of cases detected in August saw a slight decrease from 2.76 lakh to 2.57 lakh, suggesting that while fewer cases might have been caught, the higher penalty amount significantly boosted revenue.
Central Railway administration consistently reminds passengers that traveling without a valid ticket constitutes an offense under the Railways Act, carrying potential penal action. These enforcement efforts underscore the railway's commitment to ensuring fair travel and discouraging unauthorised use of its services.