The biggest shock of Indian Railways! If you break the rules from July 1, you will be charged double the fine, it will have a huge impact on your pocket.

New Delhi: If you also often travel by Indian Railways, then this news is very important for you. Indian Railways is going to make a big change from July 1 to provide better and convenient services to its passengers. Now double the amount will be collected as minimum fine from passengers who violate rules during rail travel or travel without tickets. This strict action of the government is sure to create panic among the ‘passengers’ who travel without tickets in the railways.

This increased minimum penalty is being implemented across the country under the ‘Public Trust (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026’. According to the Railway Board, this new rule will become fully effective from July 1, 2026 with the issuance of a separate notification.

Major change in Section 137 of Railway Act, 1989

The government has made several important changes in the age-old Railways Act, 1989 under the Public Trust Act. In the official information given by the Press Information Bureau (PIB) on behalf of the Railway Ministry, it has been said that under Section 137 of the Railway Act, from July 1, passengers will have to pay a minimum fine of at least Rs 500 for traveling in a train fraudulently without a valid ticket or without a pass. Let us tell you that currently the minimum fine for this crime is only Rs 250, which has now been doubled.

Double fine will also be charged under section 138

Not only fraud, but even simple carelessness is now going to cost heavily. Under Section 138 of the Railway Act, from July 1, a minimum fine of Rs 500 will be charged if anyone is caught traveling in a train without a valid ticket or pass, or if caught traveling beyond the scheduled station. Even for this rule, till now the Railways used to charge a minimum fine of only Rs 250. However, according to the information received from PIB, no changes have been made in other old provisions under Section 137 and 138 of the Railway Act, 1989.

The railway administration has also made clear the main reason behind this tough decision. Railways says that the main objective of doubling the amount of minimum fine is to strengthen the compliance with the rules among the passengers, so that people avoid traveling without tickets and to further improve the security of Railways’ revenue.

Now understand with an easy example, how much will be lost if caught.

If you still have not understood this mathematics, then understand it with a simple example. From July 1, if a passenger is found without a ticket in a train, he will have to pay the full fare for his journey along with a penalty of Rs 500 instead of Rs 250.

Suppose, a passenger is traveling from Prayagraj to Varanasi in general or any other compartment without purchasing a ticket, and the actual fare for that route is Rs 200. If caught by TTE while travelling, the passenger will have to pay the full fare of Rs 200 plus the new minimum fine of Rs 500, making a total of Rs 700 on the spot. Therefore, Railways is continuously appealing to the passengers to always board the train with proper and valid tickets.