The RailMadad of the Indian Railway has become the most used platform for registering any complaint faced during train travel and any deficiencies in facilities at railway stations.
The quick response time and round-the-clock functioning of a dedicated complaint cell to redress the grievances have remained the hallmark for the Chennai division among the six divisions of the Southern Railway. However, the portal is yet to reach the passengers on a larger scale to prove better services, said railway officials.
The Indian railway has four types of complaint redressal systems with the RailMadad being the most easy and accessible format for railway users. Unlike other complaint mechanisms, the RailMadad is accessible in three ways in the form of registering complaints through call centre 139, mobile app and web browser.
Giving a broader picture of the four types of grievance redressal system available for railway commuters, a senior official of the Chennai division of Southern Railway said RailMadad receives the predominant number of complaints regarding any deficiencies in the suburban and long distance trains and the facilities in railway stations, other than the three routes of Centralised Public Grievance and Management System (CP Grams), emails and complaint registers maintained in railway stations.
Though they are active on Twitter for complaint rectifications, railway officials highlight the necessity for commuters to use RailMadad for quicker action to be taken. It has easy flow and the drop-down boxes for registering complaints helps in faster identification of the problems and automatically alerts the officials of various departments concerned for taking the necessary steps. Once the rectification steps are taken, the complainant would also receive feedback on the issue, railway official pointed out.
Once a complaint lands on RailMadad, the Chennai division, it would be relayed through WhatsApp and Telegram in specific groups within a few minutes for taking necessary action.
A separate Complaint Cell carried out an analysis of the total complaints of 2,990 received in November and has found a majority of the complaint pertains to coach maintenance, punctuality, electrical equipment, cleanliness of bedrolls, water shortage, unreserved passengers occupying reserved compartments and air-condition not functioning in coaches.
The RailMadad also received complaints of railway stations regarding passenger amenities, water availability, cleanliness, security, luggage and parcel services and staff behaviour.
The performance of the Chennai division in taking steps to complaints though remains satisfactory among the six railway zones of Southern Railway, the division handles more than 40% of the complaints registered among the six railway zones and the headquarters.
Nearly 3,000 grievances have been handled out of the total of 7,950 complaints registered in November with zero backlog , the official said.
The CP Grams, a portal of the Central government at https://pgportal.gov.in/ that handles complaints of the public, as also email complaints registered through pgcell@mas.railnet.gov.in of the complaint cell of Chennai division. The commuters could also register their complaints in the register book maintained in railway stations.
