Indian Railways ordered to pay Rs 30,000 after passenger complains about dirty toilets: Here's what happened
Next time you encounter a dirty toilet on a train, keep in mind¡ªyou could actually be compensated for the hassle by Indian Railways! A man from Vizag recently took his complaint all the way to the district consumer commission, and now he's set to receive Rs 30,000 for the inconvenience.
V. Murthy, a 55-year-old resident of Vizag, booked four 3AC tickets for a trip from Tirupati to Duvvada on the Tirumala Express for himself and his family.?
When they boarded on June 5, 2023, they encountered multiple issues: the coach's AC wasn't functioning well, the entire coach was unclean, and the toilets had no running water.?
Despite Murthy reporting these problems to railway officials in Duvvada, no action was taken.
Now, the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-I in Visakhapatnam has ruled that Indian Railways is responsible for providing basic services like clean, functional toilets and air conditioning, as passengers pay for these amenities.
The Commission has directed Indian Railways to compensate the passenger with Rs 25,000 for the physical and mental distress caused by inadequate amenities. Additionally, they were ordered to pay Rs 5,000 to cover Murthy's legal expenses.
Railway authorities, however, denied Murthy's claims, suggesting he was making baseless allegations for financial gain, according to TOI. They argued that since Murthy and his family had completed their journey without incident, the complaint lacked merit.
While the commission observed that the railway staff acknowledged the complaint, stating that the toilet issue was due to an airlock caused by a technical glitch, it criticised the railways for operating trains without ensuring essential facilities were in order.
Recently, Indian Railways had faced controversy after an RTI query revealed that blankets provided on trains are washed only once a month.
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