Railways says publication was not an authorized paper to be given to passengers
Railways says publication was not an authorized paper to be given to passengers
A publication has turned into a controversy with right-wing propaganda being distributed to passengers on the Bengaluru-Chennai Shatabdi Express, prompting the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to launch a probe into the matter.
IRCTC has admitted that the newspaper ‘The Aryavart Express’ was unauthorized. A passenger, Gopika Bashi, raised the issue in a Twitter post, questioning how IRCTC allowed it to be delivered in the first place. “This morning I boarded the Bangalore-Chennai Shatabdi Express and was greeted by this openly promotional publication on every other seat – The Aryavarta Express. Never even heard about it. How is this allowing???” she said in the tweet.
Responding to the tweet, the Divisional Railway Manager, Chennai asked counterparts in Bengaluru to investigate the matter. The DRM has also stated that the publication was not an authorized paper to be delivered to the passengers, and asked IRCTC to look into the matter by tagging them on their official Twitter IDs and take necessary action to ensure that such incidents do not recur. be.
When contacted, a South Western Railway (SWR) official said: “We are probing the matter. This was done without permission. IRCTC has been advised to ensure that vendors do not put anything in the newspaper.
IRCTC, which ordered an inquiry into the matter, said that action would be taken against those found responsible. “This letter is not among the publications approved by IRCTC,” a spokesperson said.
In a later tweet, it claimed that the newspaper in question was found to be an insert inside regular, accepted newspapers. The onboard monitoring staff will keep a close watch on the same. The licensee of the train has also been counselled.”
Responding to IRCTC’s tweet, Bakshi responded to the claim made by the rail assistant, saying, “It was not an insert – it was in my seat when I boarded.”
The tweet called for a response from political party leaders. “How does this paper figure in the list of subscribed publications?” He asked.
Congress MP B Manickam Tagore also questioned how such a newspaper found a way to board the train. Will the Hon’ble Railway Minister order an inquiry into this? Is it @RailMinIndia’s proven policy to allow promotional material in Shatabdi Express? Will write and raise this issue in Lok Sabha. #IndiaAgainstHate,” he tweeted.
(with inputs from PTI)