The Indian Railways has decided to strictly enforce the 3 decades old baggage allowance rules. According to reports, the railways has decided to strictly implement the norms and impose a penalty on passengers who are caught travelling with excess luggage without paying for it.
The 3 decades old rule allows Railways to penalise passengers at six times the stipulated amount for excess baggage. As per reports, the rule states that a passenger in the sleeper class can carry luggage weighing up to 40 kg and passengers in second class can carry up to 35 kg without paying anything extra than the ticket price. Beyond the weight limit, they can carry up to 80 kg and 70 kg respectively in their compartments after paying for it at the parcel office. Any extra luggage will have to be put in the parcel van after payment.
In the compartment, the charges for luggage beyond free allowance will be at 1.5 times the luggage rate. The Railways has decided to run a campaign to strictly implement the rules. The penalty for extra luggage will be six times the luggage rate in case the passengers are found with extra luggage beyond the permissible limit. However, The Railways has clarified that unlike airports, there will not be luggage weighing for each passenger but the officials will carry out random checks in trains.
As per reports, the baggage norms and penalty provisions have been there for 3 decades but the Indian Railways has never implemented the rules strictly. But after repeated and numerous complaints from passengers about people travelling with excessive baggage and causing discomfort to fellow passengers, The Railways has decided to enforce the existing rules.
AC first class passengers can carry up to 70 kgs for free and up to 150 kgs after payment of a fee. AC 2 tier passengers can carry up to 50 kgs for free and a maximum of 100 kgs after payment.
The Railways would also reportedly ensure that trunks, suitcases, bags and boxes would adhere to the prescribed maximum dimensions of 100cm x 60cm x 25cm. Any luggage bigger than the prescribed size would have to be carried in the parcel van.
The Railways have launched a special awareness and implementation drive across all its zones during the first week of June.
