Train Delayed by 6 Hours, But Man Fined ₹520 After Platform Ticket Expires at Kalyan Station

A man was fined ₹520 at Kalyan Junction railway station after his platform ticket expired while he was waiting for a delayed train. The incident has attracted attention on social media after the passenger claimed that the delay was caused by the train and not by any mistake on his part.

The passenger, Aditya Singh Chauhan, shared his experience with the Hindufeed team and said he had come to Kalyan station to see off his family members who were travelling to Bihar on Train No. 11061, the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus–Jaynagar Express, also known as the Pawan Express.

According to Aditya, the train was scheduled to arrive at Kalyan around 12:12 PM. He said he reached the station with his family and purchased an online platform ticket for two people at 11:58 AM. The ticket cost ₹20.

Aditya told Hindufeed that railway authorities later informed passengers that the train was delayed and expected to arrive around 2:09 PM. Since the delay appeared manageable, he and his family continued waiting at the station.

However, the train did not arrive at the revised time. Aditya said he repeatedly approached the inquiry counter and railway staff to ask for updates, but was told that no information was available. According to him, passengers were informed that announcements would be made once fresh updates were received.

“We kept asking for information, but nobody could tell us when the train would arrive,” Aditya told Hindufeed.

As the hours passed, Aditya said his family, including children, waited at the station while keeping an eye on their luggage. He claimed that even by 4 PM and 5 PM there was no clear information about the train’s arrival.

According to him, the display boards also created confusion. He said that after initially showing the delayed arrival time of 2:09 PM, the boards later reverted to displaying the train’s regular timing instead of providing an updated arrival estimate. Aditya said the train remained delayed at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus and finally reached Kalyan at around 6:30 PM, more than six hours after its scheduled arrival time.

By then, his platform ticket had expired. Speaking to Hindufeed, Aditya said he was aware that the ticket had expired and was planning to purchase a new one. However, before he could do so, he was stopped by a ticket-checking official.

“I told them that the ticket had expired because of the delay and that we were going to buy another one,” Aditya said. “But they did not agree.”

According to Aditya, he was asked to sit with railway staff and was later fined ₹520. A screenshot shared by him shows an excess fare ticket issued under the category “Without Ticket”, with the amount paid through UPI.

Aditya believes passengers should not be penalised when train delays and lack of information create such situations.

“If we had known the train would arrive at 6 PM or 7 PM, we would have purchased another platform ticket,” he said. “We had children and luggage with us. We could not leave everything unattended and keep going out to buy new tickets when there was no information about the train.”

He also questioned who should be responsible when passengers are forced to wait for several hours because of train delays.

The incident gained attention after a video related to the matter was shared on social media. Many users supported the passenger and argued that railway authorities should consider the circumstances before imposing penalties in such cases.

Others said that platform ticket validity rules are clearly defined and that railway staff are required to enforce them.

The matter also received a response from the Ministry of Railways on social media. In a public comment, the ministry asked the passenger to share his mobile number and suggested that he raise the complaint through RailMadad or by calling the railway helpline number 139.

While railway authorities have not issued a detailed statement on the incident, the case has started a discussion about whether passengers should be fined when long train delays cause platform tickets to expire.

The debate continues online, with many people asking whether greater flexibility is needed when delays occur due to circumstances beyond a passenger’s control.