Boarding ‘general’ compartments — in which seating is not reserved — especially in long-distance trains leaving major cities, has always been an ordeal for passengers. The massive mismatch between the numbers of travellers and the available seats drives people to queue up on platforms up to 10 hours in advance. Chaos at the time of boarding has led to stampedes and even deaths in the past. The Railway Protection Force is employed routinely to prevent fights among groups of passengers. Gangs of touts ‘reserve’ seats for a price, and those who can’t pay suffer.
The Western and Central Railways have introduced a new Biometric Token System (BTS) that seeks to streamline the process of boarding unreserved coaches. Tokens are issued on a first-come, first-served basis, after accepting biometric information of individual passengers. Passengers with valid tickets are required to place their fingers on a scanner, and are issued a token with a serial number against their biometric data. Passengers must queue up and enter the compartment in the order of their serial numbers.
The tokens are issued three hours before a train’s departure. The use of biometrics cuts out the touts, and helps genuine passengers.
Read more in a report by Avishek G Dastidar and Atikh Rashid published in The Indian Express... (Link given below)
