The Indian railways can be expected to make production of proof of identity mandatory for all passengers travelling in air-conditioned classes anywhere in the country starting February 15.
Today an identity proof is a must only for passengers with Tatkal tickets or electronic tickets.
A passenger could produce any one of the following as proof of identity: voter identity card, PAN (permanent account number) card issued by the income tax department, driving licence issued by a regional transport office (RTO); passbook with a photograph issued by a nationalised bank; credit card with laminated photo issued by a bank; student identity card with photo; or Aadhaar, a 12-digit individual identification number issued by the UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India.)
If two or more passengers are travelling in a group, at least one of them will need to produce a proof of identity.
The Railways hopes that making proof of identity mandatory for all AC travel will curb impersonation and black-marketing of tickets, and eliminate touts. According to the railway ministry, over 80,000 cases of unauthorised transfer of tickets were detected in the last few years.