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Hyderabad: A consumer commission here has directed Southern Railway to pay Rs 35,000 to a passenger who missed a business meeting and a return flight after his train was diverted, delaying his journey by nearly 16 hours.
The Hyderabad District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission-I held the railways deficient in service for not informing the passenger in advance about the diversion.
The complainant, Ramakrishna, a cashew trader from Kothapet, had booked a premium tatkal ticket for Rs 1,428 on the Tamil Nadu Superfast Express from Chennai to New Delhi to attend a business meeting in the national capital on September 30, 2024, according to the order.
He reached Chennai railway station on September 28 to board the train, only to learn that it had been diverted through a different route. No SMS or prior communication was sent to him about the change, he told the commission.
The diverted route delayed the train by nearly 16 hours, and it reached New Delhi around 10.30 pm on September 30. As a result, Ramakrishna missed his business meeting as well as his return flight from Delhi, following which he approached the commission seeking compensation.
During the proceedings, Southern Railway submitted that the diversion had been necessitated by signalling system modernisation work.
The railway authorities admitted that SMS alerts about the diversion were sent only to passengers boarding at Vijayawada, Khammam, Warangal and Nagpur, and not to those boarding at Chennai.
The commission observed that the railways had failed to give the passenger timely information. Had prior intimation been given, the complainant could have made alternative travel arrangements, it said.
While the commission found that Ramakrishna had not produced sufficient evidence to back his claim of business losses, it took into account the mental agony, inconvenience and the missed return flight.
It directed Southern Railway to pay Rs 25,000 as compensation and Rs 10,000 towards litigation costs, taking the total to Rs 35,000.
This post was last modified on July 28, 2026 9:31 am