Railways Cut Down Sleeping Hours For Passengers By An Hour To Avoid Quarrels

The Indian Railways, in an attempt to provide a comfortable journey to its passengers, have come up with a new rule where the sleeping hours of the passengers have been reduced by an hour.

The decision was announced in a circular dated August 31 with the aim to resolve issues among railway passengers who are often seen quarrelling about berths and stretched sleep time.

The latest circular by the railway board says that the passengers in the reserved coaches can only sleep between 10pm and 6am to allow others to sit on the seats for the rest of the time. The new provision replaces paragraph 652 in the Indian Railways Commercial Manual, Volume I, which provides for sleeping accommodation between 9pm and 6am.

This will be applicable to all reserved coaches with sleeping facilities. The circular, however, makes an exception for sick people, persons with disability, and pregnant women.

“We had received feedback regarding issues between passengers over sleeping arrangements. We already have a rule in place. However, we wanted to clarify it and ensure it is followed,” Railways ministry spokesperson Anil Saxena said, reported NDTV.

Some passengers go to sleep as soon as they board the train; this becomes a problem for the fellow travellers on different berths irritated.

Officials said that the problem is more acute for side berths. The circular has clarified that a person booked on side upper berth will not have any claim to the seat on the lower berth between 10pm and 6am.

Ministry officials said the new directive will help Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) to resolve such disputes on board by preventing anyone from taking catnaps beyond the permissible time.

The Logical Indian community hopes that the new rule is executed properly. It is important for the passengers to cooperate with the officials so that their co-passengers are not disturbed during their journey.