No blankets, compulsory face masks: How new Indian Railways rules will change your journey

The Indian Railways has announced that it will start phase-wise resumption of train services from May 12, onward. However, the journeys will be different from now on - it has announced new rules. It has announced that while air-conditioners  will be available on 15 Rajdhani routes and the fare would be equivalent to that of the super-fast train, it will be compulsory for all the passengers to wear masks. The passengers will also have to undergo screening at departure and only asymptomatic passengers will be allowed to board the trains.

The Indian Railways is also unlikely to begin the offline bookings of tickets anytime soon. It said that passengers can book tickets for the trains from 4 pm onward on May 11 through the official IRCTC website - irctc.co.in. Tickets can also be booked through IRCTC mobile application. Booking of tickets through ‘agents’, (both IRCTC and Railway) shall not be allowed. No provision of tatkal and premium tatkal accommodation will be there and no current booking shall be allowed either.

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Ticket booking counters at stations will remain closed and no counter tickets, including platform tickets, will be issued. Unlike before, he will not be able to see off your loved ones till their berth. Only passengers with valid confirmed tickets will be allowed to enter stations.

There is a high chance that passengers on these trains will not be given given blankets and linen to reduce the chances of the spread of coronavirus. There will be special norms for the air-conditioning inside the coaches and temperatures will be kept slightly higher than the usual and maximum supply of only fresh air will be ensured.

The special trains will run from New Delhi to Dibrugarh, Agartala, Howrah, Patna, Bilaspur, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar, Secunderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Madgaon, Mumbai Central, Ahmedabad and Jammu Tawi. The railways will also plan to run trains on new routes, based on availability after reserving 20,000 coaches for COVID-19 care centres and an adequate number for running up to 300 Shramik Specials every day.