The railway further tightens refund regulations and puts forward stricter standards for quality construction

NEW DELHI: Last-minute changes in plans will cost you dearly as Railways has announced a revised rule linking refunds to when tickets are canceled before a train is scheduled to depart. According to the new regulations, passengers who cancel their tickets within 8 hours before departure will not receive a refund, while passengers who cancel between 8 and 24 hours before departure will be deducted 50% of the fee.Announcing the changes as part of the ongoing reforms, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday said that as per the new norms, 25 per cent of the fare will be deducted for tickets canceled between 24 and 72 hours before the departure of the train, while a minimum amount will be deducted for tickets canceled before 72 hours. The new regulations will take effect from April 1 to 15.Currently, if passengers cancel their tickets 4-12 hours before train departure, no refund will be given and 50% of the fee will be deducted. Likewise, only 25% is deducted for tickets canceled between 12 and 48 hours, and there is a minimum deduction for tickets canceled before 48 hours.Vishno said the decision to adopt stricter refund standards was made after an investigation given that touts were still hoarding some tickets and conducting black market marketing. He said customers sent by the railroad to lure customers discovered how touts took advantage of last-minute cancellations. He added that the changes would stop black marketers and agents from selling tickets at the last minute.The minister also announced that passengers who have booked their tickets online can change their boarding point (station) 30 minutes before planned departure. Currently, boarding point changes are only allowed before the first chart is prepared.Vaishnaw announces reforms in contracting norms to improve quality of construction. As per the new norms, the railways will assess the bidding capabilities of contractors bidding for all projects above Rs 10 crore. He also said that as per the new norms, contractors will have to carry out work directly under their own supervision for 60 per cent of the total price and will be allowed to subcontract 40 per cent, following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s directives to the infrastructure sector.Drawing on the experience of the first Dedicated Freight Corridor project, work was packaged up by participants with no experience of similar projects. This has led to complications and now only contractors who have completed at least 20% of “similar work” are eligible to bid. Bidders must also submit a detailed execution plan before the project begins for better monitoring and timely execution. If the winning bidder’s offer is significantly lower than the estimated project cost, the railroad will take out additional performance bonds.