Mysore: In a bid to curb ticketless travel and other forms of irregular travel, South Western Railway today, launched a massive ticket checking drive at Mysore Railway Station under the supervision of Sri Rajkumar Lal,Divisional Railway Manager, SWIRly,Mysore.

Till noon a total of 26 cases have been booked, including 12 for ticketless travel. A penalty of Rs 4,755/- has been realised.

Interacting with passengers onboard Tippu express at Mysore Railway Station Sri Rajkumar Lal explained that as per the directives of the Ministry of Railways, the division had launched many drives in the recent past to ensure that all basic amenities for passengers both on trains & at stations were in functional order.

A lot of stress is being laid on improving the cleanliness standard by adopting an effective garbage disposal system across the division. A close watch is also is being kept on the quality & hygiene aspects of food served to passengers, he added.

A few passengers wanted Railways to do more for curbing the presence of unauthorised vendors & beggars on trains. A few lady passengers stated that the Railways should also attach more importance for ensuring safety of women passengers, especially during night.

Sri Rajkumar Lal has urged travelling public to always buy proper journey ticket before boarding the trains. He further stated that ticketless travel was a burden on the system and as such strong penal charges will be levied on offenders including imprisonment as per the provisions of the Railways Act.

Sri Rajkumar Lal has said that intensive checks will continue throughout the festive season.