The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) and Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Chennai, have both reacted after a passenger tweeted about distribution of a ‘blatantly propagandist publication’ on board the Bengaluru-Chennai Shatabdi Express.
“This morning, I boarded the Bangalore-Shatabdi Express only to be greeted by this blatantly propagandist publication on every other seat -The Aryavarth Express. Had never even heard of it. How is @IRCTC official allowing this???” Bengaluru-based Gopika Bashi, the passenger, posted on Twitter, on Friday.
On this, IRCTC, the ticketing-and-catering arm of the railways, issued a clarification. “The mentioned ‘Aryavarth Express’ was found inside the regular approved news paper as insert. The News Paper Vendor has been strictly advised to avoid any such inserts in future. Onboard monitoring staff will keep a strict vigil of the same. The licensee of the train has also been counselled,” it said.
{{/usCountry}}On this, IRCTC, the ticketing-and-catering arm of the railways, issued a clarification. “The mentioned ‘Aryavarth Express’ was found inside the regular approved news paper as insert. The News Paper Vendor has been strictly advised to avoid any such inserts in future. Onboard monitoring staff will keep a strict vigil of the same. The licensee of the train has also been counselled,” it said.
{{/usCountry}}However, in response, Bashi said the publication was ‘definitely not an insert’ and that it was on her seat, as well as other seats, when she boarded the train. A copy of the Deccan Herald, she said, was on the next seat.
According to reports, IRCTC has approved only English-language Deccan Herald, and one other local paper as the only two publications to be distributed in trains of this region. Only IRCTC licensees distribute these on board trains.
Meanwhile, after Bashi’s tweet went viral, and with several users demanding to know why 'The Aryavarth Express’ was being distributed on board the train, DRM Chennai, responding to a user who tagged it in her tweet, said that the matter is being probed by DRM Bengaluru. “@drmsbc is investigating the issue on how an unauthorised newspaper found its way into the train. We like to inform everyone that the train belongs to Bengaluru division and the incident happened there. We are sure they would take appropriate action,” it said in a tweet.
Politicians have also waded into the controversy, with Congress MP, Manickam Tagore, tweeting on the issue.
(with PTI inputs)