Given two weeks, the Supreme Court has fixed October 27, 2026 as the date from which Counter-Sold Railway Tickets must carry insurance in the same manner as online tickets, and has warned that if there is no substantial progress by the next listing on November 16 it may have to consider whether the Railway Board, as presently constituted, should continue in office.
New Delhi: Passengers who buy their tickets at railway station counters are to get the same insurance cover as those who book online, the Supreme Court has directed, with effect from October 27, 2026, adding that the responsibility will lie directly on the Railway Board if the direction is not implemented [Union of India v. Radha Yadav].
The order, dated October 6, 2026, came from a Bench of Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice R Mahadevan on miscellaneous applications filed by the Union of India in civil appeals of 2019. Additional Solicitor General Vikramjit Banerjee appeared for the Union, and Senior Advocate Shikhil Suri assisted the Court as amicus curiae.
Cover for the passenger at the counter
At present, the Bench noted, only those who buy tickets online can opt for insurance by paying a small extra amount. Passengers from the poorest sections of society mostly buy at reservation counters and have no such cover. The authorities had already been given enough time to devise a mechanism, the Court said, and nothing had been done.
“As there has been no progress on this aspect either, we direct that within two weeks, i.e., with effect from 27.10.2026, all tickets sold over the counter at all railway stations shall also be covered by insurance in the same manner as tickets purchased online. The aforesaid direction shall be implemented mandatorily, failing which the responsibility shall be directly upon the Railway Board.”
“Assurances have remained largely on paper”
The Bench began its order by recording its displeasure at the conduct of the Ministry of Railways’ officers in a matter touching the safety of ordinary passengers. The Railways had told the Court again and again that all necessary steps were being taken, yet little had changed on the ground, and even the money set apart for safety had not been fully spent.
“The Court records its utter disappointment and displeasure at the conduct of the officers of the Ministry of Railways in such a serious matter concerning the safety of the common man. The Railways have been representing before this Court that all necessary steps are being taken in this regard. However, it appears that such assurances have remained largely on paper and that no substantial change has taken place on the ground.”
Finding “hardly any progress on the ground”, the Court directed the Chairman and Members of the Railway Board to remain personally present on the next date of listing, November 16, 2026, at 3 pm. If assurances were being given to the Court without matching seriousness in implementation, it said, they would be held personally responsible.
Fencing targets and the Board’s future
Fencing railway tracks, which the Court described as a basic safety measure, has fallen short of its targets by “almost one-third every year”. The Chairman and Members of the Railway Board were asked to come prepared to explain how that shortfall had occurred in their planning and implementation.
The Bench also put the Board on notice about its own position, saying that it may have to consider whether the Board, as presently constituted, should be allowed to continue in office if there was no substantial progress by the next date.
“We make it clear that on the next date of listing, if the Court finds that there has been no substantial progress on the ground as compared to the position obtaining today, the Court may have to consider whether the Railway Board, as presently constituted, is fit to be permitted to continue in office.”
Personal appearance kept in abeyance
Once the order had been dictated, ASG Vikramjit Banerjee sought one last chance to file a categorical affidavit. It would set out the actual work done on the ground over the past year, the reasons the prescribed targets were missed, at least for fencing, and how the Railway Board proposes to meet the targets placed before the Court. The Bench accepted the request and kept the direction for the Chairman and Members to appear physically in abeyance for now. The other directions in the order remain in force.
Why the order matters
A string of assurances has now become a fixed, dated obligation. With October 27, 2026 set as the date from which counter tickets must carry insurance, the Court has closed a gap that left passengers without internet access, often the poorest travellers, outside a benefit already open to those who book online.
It also shows continuing supervision being used to hold a public body to its own promises. The Court tied responsibility to the Railway Board by name, linked it to unspent safety budgets and missed fencing targets, and raised the question of whether the Board should continue in its present form if nothing changes by November 16.
Case Title: Union of India v. Radha Yadav [M.A. Nos. 741-742/2019 in C.A. Nos. 1265-1266/2019], with Union of India v. Shri Ghetu Mondal and Anr. [M.A. Nos. 743-744/2019 in C.A. Nos. 1267-1268/2019]
Bench: Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Justice R Mahadevan, Supreme Court of India
Date of Order: October 6, 2026
Appearances: Vikramjit Banerjee, ASG, with Nachiketa Joshi, Senior Advocate, for the Union of India; Shikhil Suri, Senior Advocate, and Vikas Singh Jangra, AoR, as amici curiae