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Indian Railways: Indian Railways is going to make major changes from July 1 to provide convenient services to its passengers. Now double the amount will be collected as minimum fine from passengers who break rules during train travel. The increased minimum penalty is being implemented under the ‘Public Trust (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026’ and will be effective from July 1, 2026, through a separate notification.

Changes made in Section 137 of the Railway Act, 1989
The government has also made changes to the laws of the Railways Act, 1989 under the Public Trust (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026. In the information given by PIB on behalf of the Railway Ministry, it has been said that under Section 137 of the Railway Act, from July 1, a fine of at least Rs 500 will be charged for traveling in a train fraudulently without a valid ticket or pass. Currently, a minimum fine of Rs 250 is charged for this crime.

Under Section 138, double fine will be charged from those traveling without ticket.
Additionally, under Section 138, from July 1, a minimum fine of Rs 500 will be charged if someone is caught traveling in a train without a valid ticket or pass or traveling beyond the designated station. For this also a minimum fine of Rs 250 is currently charged. According to the information received from PIB, no changes have been made in the other provisions of Section 137 and 138 of the Railway Act, 1989.

Railways said that the main objective of doubling the minimum penalty amount is to strengthen compliance and improve revenue protection.

Understand with example, what will be the total price to be paid if caught.
From July 1, if a passenger is found without a ticket, he will now have to pay Rs 500 instead of Rs 250 along with the full journey fare. Suppose, a passenger is traveling from Prayagraj to Varanasi without purchasing a ticket, the fare of which is Rs 200. If caught by the TTE, he will have to pay a total fare of Rs 200 along with a fine of Rs 500 and a total of Rs 700.