21 hours ago
Consumer court asks rlys to pay 2.3L to Behala family for delay
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Kolkata: The state consumer disputes redressal commission ordered railway authorities to compensate Rs 1 lakh in addition to the cost of air fares to Raghunath Chakraborty, a Behala resident, whose 12-member family missed their Kolkata-bound flight from Delhi due to the delayed Kerala Sampark Kranti Express.
They had to purchase new flight tickets for Rs 1,38,281.
The bench with Ajeya Matilal and Nityasundar Trivedi instructed the railway board chairman and Northern Railway GM to pay Rs 1 lakh compensation and reimburse Rs 1.3 lakh, and also cover litigation costs of Rs 10,000.
On June 14, 2017, Chakraborty's family travelled from Chandigarh to Delhi to catch their 5.50 pm Jet Airways flight to Kolkata. They boarded the 9 am train from Chandigarh, scheduled to reach Delhi by 1.20 pm.
However, the Kerala Sampark Kranti Express arrived at Delhi at 5 pm, causing them to miss their flight. Subsequently, they booked Indigo airline tickets costing Rs 1.3 lakh.
In their appeal, the family said they had no choice but to purchase last-minute flight tickets. Though they filed a plaint in the district forum citing service deficiency, it was rejected. Railways defended the delay, citing track welding work for passenger safety.
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Chakraborty's family then approached the state commission. Citing an SC verdict, it determined service deficiency and held railways liable for compensation, stating: "Citizens/passengers cannot be at the mercy of the authorities. Somebody has to accept responsibility." The court rejected the safety-related excuse and advised that routine track maintenance should be organised to prevent delays and passenger inconvenience.
