CBI raids railway stations in Rajasthan

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the vigilance wing of North Western Railway conducted joint raids Wednesday at railway stations in Rajasthan over alleged lapses in Tatkal (emergency) ticket booking, an official said “The raids were conducted at various railway stations, including Jaipur and Jodhpur, from morning till noon. A few people were detained for questioning but no arrest has been made so far,” said CBI spokesperson Dharini Mishra. The investigative agency received complaints that the people were unable to book Tatkal tickets due to an alleged nexus between railways officials and touts at the stations. The CBI said that they had not registered any formal complaint but hoped to nab the touts and corrupt officials.
Tatkal tickets cannot be booked online from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. every day. This forces people to procure these tickets from the normal ticket counters where touts are allegedly active. The Tatkal scheme was introduced by Indian Railways to meet the urgent travel requirement of passengers.