Times
of India: Nagpur: Monday, 22 February 2016.
At a time
when Indian Railways is finding new ways to mop up revenue, railway minister
Suresh Prabhu has failed to touch the sensitive issue of privilege passes to
existing and former employees, which could save huge public money running into
crores.
Railways
annually provide six privilege passes to each of its officers, three to their
employees and one to retired staff, along with concessional travels, virtually
allowing them a free ride.
There are
around 27 lakh 16 lakh working & 11 lakh retired railway employees -- who
have been enjoying privilege passes. Assuming Rs8,000 is the minimum amount the
Railways 'lose' on AC travel by every employee, the financial burden is a
whopping Rs2,160 crore on the taxpayer. With this amount, the Railways could
complete the third line project between Nagpur-Wardha-Ballarshah (208km).
A senior
railway audit department official, on condition of anonymity, said the loss
amount could be much higher. "If employees use benefit of all privilege
passes, the railways may be losing at least Rs15,000 crores towards
freebies," he said.
Though Prabhu
aims to bring fiscal discipline and railways are exploring possibilities of
cutting revenue losses that come by way of providing free or concessional
travel, passes to employees have been left untouched.
Over the last
five years, Indian Railways' has incurred a loss of approximately Rs5,000 crore
towards providing for free or concessional travel to a total of 53 categories
of persons that includes disabled, senior citizens, sportsmen, students, media
persons and medical professionals. The revenue loss on account of
free/concessional travel in the last fiscal is estimated at Rs1,300 crore.
As per
information received under RTI by city-based activist Avinash Prabhune,
railways are not maintaining or calculating cost of privilege passes.
"Not
maintaining costing for such huge revenue loss is contradicting all the
principles of transparency and accountability," says Prabhune.
"Railways claim reimbursement of expenditure for ticket vouchers issued to
all MPs and MLAs. The same principle needs to be applied to employees requiring
working out the costing of each privilege pass."
However, the
Railway Board doesn't agree. Prabhune, who is pursuing the issue with CAG and
Railway Board for the last three years, has been told by Board that
"suggestion of reimbursing cost of journey in view of pass facility to
employees is not feasible to accept".
Surprised by
the reply, Prabhune says he is not against passes, but unaccounted revenue
loss. Considering the huge amount of LPG subsidy, Centre took appropriate steps
to curtail subsidy from rich people. "Similarly, if valuation of railway
passes is done, government can save huge money. But it seems officials are
against it as they don't want give up this privilege," he said.
Interestingly,
railways claim reimbursement of expenditure from Dedicated Freight Corridor
Corporation of India Ltd (DFCCIL) officials towards cost of journey undertaken
on duty. The same principle needs to be applied for privilege passes. The RTI activist
had written to Prabhu on the issue in March requesting to stop misuse of passes
as every pass is valid for five months. However, Railway Board is reluctant.
"When
LPG subsidy of crores of citizens can be deposited to individual bank account,
why can't travel to a few lakh railway employees be calculated," asked
Prabhune.
TAKEN FOR
A RIDE
* Burden of around Rs2,100 cr passed on to common man by
way of privilege passes
* The huge financial transaction neither taxed by finance
ministry nor accounted by railways
* Common man sharing huge financial burden due to privilege
passes but deprived accommodation in trains as his legitimate seat is occupied
by pass holders
* Railways not maintaining costing details of railway
passes
* CAG too has not objected to such incorrect practice of
not computing costing of passes
* RTI by Prabhune was misplaced by CAG office
* Railway audit wing of CAG compared pass facility with LTC
facility, which is given once
* CIC allows applicant Prabhune's case stating CAG defeated
purpose of RTI by not supplying information
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