Almost 8,500 people were caught travelling without tickets in trains in the Central and Western lines during the months of June to September according to the data released by railways. Most cases were caught in the sub-urban trains inside the trains and at stations.
In the month of August alone,1262 defaulters were caught in the Western railway routes. With each passing month, the number has been only increasing. The number of defaulters in the Central railway routes is more than Western railway routes, with the former reporting 5797 cases. Most of these cases come from stations like Kalyan, Thane,stretches on Kalyan-Karjat and Kalyan-Kasara where trains halt at selected stations.
Railway officials allege that the number of people using fake QR codes and ID proofs is increasing. There have been cases where commuters think that an ID card is enough to travel on trains, without purchasing a train ticket. Officials emphasized on the need to strengthen the QR code system to avoid such cases.
