Singara Chennai? Metro Grapples With Spit, Drunken Riders, Street Food Sales

Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has been busy the past few weeks tackling new growing issues such as spitting, urinating, travelling drunk and defacing of property, Times of India has reported. In the course of the past three years, CMRL has fined more than 100 commuters and has reportedly collected Rs 24,000 in fine amount.

Times of India quoted a CMRL official as saying, “We have caught commuters spitting paan on the tiled floors, on the walls and on the steps in the ticketing and platform areas. Our staff have caught and fined commuters and non-commuters urinating in the parking lot and close to the walls of the stations.”

A flying squad has been appointed to look into the issue and take necessary action as per the provisions under Metro Railways (Operations and Maintenance) Act 2002. Several other nuisances such as defecating in the subways that connect to metro stations, vendors selling food, attempting to jump on the tracks, and the team has been doing their best to keep the security intact.

Since a lot of passengers do not carry cash in hand with them in large sums, the fine between Rs 50 and Rs 5,000 cannot be effectively imposed. Hence, the officials collect Rs 250 in general or the amount they can afford to pay on the spot.