Printed paper charts used by ticket checking staff in long-distance trains will henceforth be sent to the shredder, with the introduction of handheld checking machines.
Passengers with Reservation Against Cancellation (RAC) tickets would not have to wait for getting a berth, as the devices would provide available vacancies in real time.
Southern Railway has done away with the cumbersome process that comes with using paper charts by distributing these terminals to TTEs.
Pilot project
R.K. Kulshrestha, General Manager of Southern Railway, distributed the devices to TTEs of the two Shatabdi trains at the launch function held at the Chennai Central Railway Station on Monday.
Mr. Kulshrestha said 20 machines had been distributed as part of the pilot project, under the Digital India campaign.
The machines would be put to use from Tuesday on Shatabdi Expresses that are operated from Chennai to Coimbatore and Mysuru.
Quick updates
The pilot project has been launched in the Chennai Division of the Southern Railway.
A senior railway official said tablets linked to the passenger reservation system would give a quick update of seats available, help in quick scanning of tickets, seat vacancies against last minute cancellations, allotment of berths and faster refund to passengers who fail to show up.