Only 35 of 11 crore eligible rail passengers claimed insurance

The rail travel insurance scheme, being operated by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) along with three private insurance firms, is for the moment a tidy affair for the railways. Out of a little under 11 crore rail passengers who were eligible for the insurance, only a minuscule number of 35 passengers applied for compensation.

According to IRCTC, a total of 3,64,06,918 passengers (3.64 crore) had voluntarily opted for this travel insurance scheme between September 1 and December 9 by paying a premium of 92 paise. From December 10, the Railway Ministry, as part of its plans to encourage cashless and digital transactions, made the scheme free for all passengers who managed to book a confirmed ticket on the IRCTC website.

IRCTC sees about 6.5 lakh confirmed tickets booked on its site every day, and for the 111 days between December 10 and March 31, the total number of confirmed passengers added up to 7.21 crores. Of them, as per numbers made available to DNA by IRCTC, a total of seven claims were upheld, and the payout in these seven claims added to Rs 61,95, 217. Four claims have been rejected so far, IRCTC said in reply to …read more