The Ministry of Railways has issued a directive barring travel agents from requesting seat or berth reservations under the Emergency Quota (EQ) system, following reports of misuse. In a circular addressed to principal chief commercial managers of all 17 railway zones, the ministry emphasized strict adherence to existing EQ guidelines and warned against unauthorized requisitions.
The move comes after the ministry received instances of travel agents attempting to exploit the system for personal or commercial gain. It reiterated that only written requests signed by a Gazetted Officer will be considered for EQ allotment. These requests must include the officer’s name, designation, contact details, and the mobile number of at least one passenger.
To ensure accountability and transparency, the ministry has instructed all concerned departments and officials to maintain a register of EQ applications, recording journey details, request sources, and assigning a diary number to each case. This number must also appear on the physical requisition slip.
Officials have been cautioned against entertaining any requisitions from travel agents and urged to verify suspicious requests directly with the concerned parties. Furthermore, the ministry has directed regular inspections of Passenger Reservation System (PRS) centres to curb potential collusion between touts and reservation staff.
Any requisition slips with overwriting or marked with terms like “V. V. IMPT,” “MUST,” or “ADJUST” must be thoroughly verified with the forwarding authority. All such documents are to be preserved for at least three months from the date of the journey. The ministry stressed that only genuine emergency cases must benefit from EQ provisions, and misusing the quota will not be tolerated.
