For MPs, rail travel to get more comfortable

Regardless of criticism of special privileges for Members of Parliament at airports, the Railways has made plans of providing special nodal officers in all zonal offices to facilitate the travel plans of parliamentarians.

The railway board has asked the general managers of all zonal offices to identify important stations involving movement of MPs and nominate station managers to coordinate the self travel plans of the said parliamentarians.

The nodal officer would be required to keep with them a list of all MPs booked from that particular location and the status of their tickets or whether they require alternate accommodation in different sections of the train.

Such nominated officers would also keep with them the contact numbers of all the MPs whose constituencies fall in their zones and also provide their own contact details to the parliamentarians and their staff. The privileges being provided are in line with those at airports.

Some of the facilities being provided to the VIPs and MPs include providing reserved lounges at domestic and international airports, free access to terminal building and visitors gallery, airport entry pass to personal staff of MPs.

Besides, one airport official is designated as protocol officer to ensure that these facilities/courtesies are provided to MPs. The protocol is to be followed by all concerned, including private airports and airlines.

Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu had recently announced in parliament that all MPs and former MPs will soon be given a unique identity to help them book train tickets and end any “misuse” in multiple bookings.

He said it was a fact that a Member of Parliament can at the same time make multiple bookings in different trains bound for different destinations and there is no mechanism to find out in which train the MP actually travelled. So, to avoid any such misuse from occurring, the Railway Ministry is mulling to provide a unique identity to each MP and former MP with a password so that only he or she can book the ticket. When the ticket is booked, the MP will instantly get an SMS in his or her registered mobile number, thus making the system transparent, he had said.