Railways to route passenger complaints directly to on-board staff

Indian Railways is overhauling its passenger grievance redressal mechanism to cut response times. The Railway Board has directed all zonal railways to ensure that details of staff deployed on trains are updated in the CMM/Rail Care system for every trip. Once updated, complaints filed through the Rail Madad platform will be routed directly to the concerned on-board staff via the Coach Mitra software.

The move follows a review of live complaints, which revealed that passenger grievances often failed to reach train escorting staff within the required time. Currently, when staff details are not updated in the system, complaints are routed through the Divisional Control office, which then contacts the staff on the train — a process that causes avoidable delays.

By linking complaints directly to the staff on duty, the Railway Board expects a substantial reduction in response time and better adherence to service-level agreements. The directive, issued in a letter to all General Managers on August 24, covers a range of train staff, including OBHS personnel, linen distribution staff, mechanical and electrical escorting staff, ticket examiners, RPF escorting staff, and IRCTC managers.

Rail Madad, launched in 2019, is an integrated platform that allows passengers to raise complaints, seek assistance, and make inquiries through multiple channels, including helpline number 139, the Rail Madad website, app, and SMS. Passengers can also provide feedback on how their complaints were resolved.