The passenger complained that the toilet of the train was not clean and there was no water inside. The Indian Railways was directed by the Delhi District Consumer Commission to pay the said amount to the passenger.
The Indian Railways has been ordered to pay Rs 30,000 to a passenger who suffered emotional and physical distress as due to poor sanitary conditions in the train. The passenger complained that the toilet of the train was not clean and there was no water inside. The Indian Railways was directed by the Delhi District Consumer Commission to pay the said amount to the passenger.
As per reports in TOI, the District Consumer Commission observed that the Indian Railways was not able to provide basic amenities to the passenger. The basic necessities of the passengers must be fulfilled by the Indian Railways under the ‘Citizen’s Charter’. the Citizen’s Charter is a document of commitments which is made by government organisations to the citizens. The Delhi Commission also observed that this has resulted in a lack in services provided to the consumers.
The advocate of the complainant argued that the passengers of the Indian Railways pay full price for their ticket for the journey in the train, and still they are barred from basic amenities such as water and clean toilets in the trains. The consumers suffer due to the lack of these facilities in their long journey in the train.
As per reports, the complainant said that on September 3, 2021, he was travelling from New Delhi Railway Station to Indore on a 3AC ticket. He also said that he bought the 3AC ticket which is more expensive than that of a sleeper coach for comfortable and hassle-free travel. However, when he woke in the morning and felt the need to go to the toilet, he noticed that there was no water and the toilet of the train was dirty. He also claimed that there was not enough water to also wash hands.
The passenger also claimed that the wash basin was also choked up with dirt and filth. The passenger then lodged a complaint with the Indian Railways on its online portal “Rail Madad” and also shared the incident on ‘X’, formerly Twitter, account of union Railway Minister and Railway Sewa. Even after two hours of registering the complaint, no action was taken in the context.
The train reached Indore station and the passenger was not able to go to the toilet which caused him emotional and physical distress due to which he had to suffer from a severe headache which led him to take an off from work. The railways kept denying that these services are not covered under the Citizen’s Charter. However, the Consumer Commission asked the Indian Railways to pay a compensation of Rs 30,000 and also Rs 10,000 for litigation charges.
Jan 21,2024
Source: Free Press Journal
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