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<ul><li><keyword id="4905924" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-Railway-Board">The Railway Board</keyword> on Thursday in a notification said that tickets booked for the regular trains from July 1 to August 12 stand cancelled.</li><li>IRCTC is also set to announce its fourth-quarter results today for the quarter ending March 2020. </li><li>Follow the<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/"> latest news and updates on Business Insider</a>. </li></ul>A day after <keyword id="6355455" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-railways">Indian Railways</keyword> extended regular train suspension till August 12 in the wake of <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> lockdown, India’s top online booking portal Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) stocks crashed. The shares fell over 3% in early trade on June 26. <div type="image" title="IRCTC Stock Price" msid="76637397" hostid="261"></div> The Railway Board on Thursday in a notification said that tickets booked for the regular trains from July 1 to August 12 stand cancelled. However, it added that “all special Rajdhani, mail and express trains that started operating from May 12 and June 1 will continue to operate.” IRCTC is also set to announce its fourth-quarter results today Analysts do not have great hopes from the earnings for the quarter ending March 2020. Even before the lockdown, the number of tickets sold via IRCTC declined in early March to 5.5 lakh tickets per day in comparison to pre-COVID level of 8.5 lakh tickets each day, according to a report from Prabhudas Lilladher, a stockbroking firm. <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="76618590" title="How does IRCTC make money" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div> Research firm Prabhudas Lilladher expects a hit of anywhere between 5.1% to 23% on IRCTC's this year's earnings due to extended suspension and ticket cancellation. “We have only enabled refunds for trains which are not being operated and for which tickets have been booked prior to lock down and up to April 14,” <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indian-railways-cancels-all-regular-trains-till-aug-12-special-trains-to-continue/articleshow/76636349.cms">a Railway spokesperson said</a>. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/irctc-website-crashes-as-it-reopened-for-booking-after-50-days-now-it-will-be-open-for-bookings-from-6-pm/articleshow/75675640.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">IRCTC website crashes as it reopened for booking after 50 days — now, it will be open for bookings from 6 pm</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indian-railways-new-rules-for-train-passengers-no-linen-and-only-packaged-food-allowed/articleshow/75675286.cms?_ga=2.9598773.1017742101.1592740209-81863974.1580121362" data-type="tilCustomLink">Indian Railways' new rules for train passengers —no linen and only packaged food allowed</a>

Cancelled trains drag IRCTC shares down by over 3%

<ul><li><keyword id="6355455" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="indian-railways">Indian Railways</keyword> launched a biometric identification system to ensure ‘guaranteed seats’ in unreserved trains. </li><li>The passengers travelling in unreserved coaches will scan their fingerprints at the biometric system to get the token. </li><li>The Railways acquired four biometric machines as of now for two stations — <keyword id="653763" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mumbai-Central-railway-station">Mumbai Central railway station</keyword> and Bandra Terminus.</li></ul>In a good news to train travellers, Indian Railways launched a biometric identification system. It will ensure ‘guaranteed seats’ to general passengers travelling in unreserved train coaches. The initiative <a href="https://www.financialexpress.com/infrastructure/railways/get-seats-easily-in-unreserved-coaches-indian-railways-introduces-new-biometric-system-for-general-passengers/1656964/">launched</a> by Western Railway division’s Mumbai Central railway station and Bandra Terminus aims to create a hassle-free experience for passengers and avoid mayhem at platforms at the time of boarding. <keyword id="102890" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="biometrics">Biometrics</keyword> have been tested first, on Pushpak Express between Mumbai and Lucknow. The Railways has been practicing biometrics for Amravati Express, Jaipur Superfast Express, Karnavati Express , Gujarat Mail, Golden Temple Mail, Paschim Express, <keyword id="1340079" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amaravati-Express">Amaravati Express</keyword>, Avadh Express, <keyword id="1301826" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Maharashtra-Sampark-Kranti-Express">Maharashtra Sampark Kranti Express</keyword>. It plans on using the machines for long-distance trains as well. From now on, the passengers travelling in unreserved coaches will scan their fingerprints at the biometric system to get the token. The token-system will ensure that the number of passengers does not surpass the number of available seats. These tokens will be verified by the official staff (<keyword id="54832" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Railway-Protection-Force">Railway Protection Force</keyword>) on the platforms. Currently, people board trains in a disorderly manner, increasing the scope of accidents. “This machine also captures images of passengers, eliminating the need for video recording of passengers boarding general class coaches,” Financial Express <a href="https://www.financialexpress.com/infrastructure/railways/get-seats-easily-in-unreserved-coaches-indian-railways-introduces-new-biometric-system-for-general-passengers/1656964/">reported</a> citing Ravinder Bhakar, CPRO of <keyword id="66416" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Western-Railways">Western Railways</keyword>. The move will cut down on the malpractices for the sake of seat reservations. The authorities will also be able to identify thieves by tracking their fingerprints. The Railways acquired four biometric machines as of now. It is in the process of securing eight more for Ahmedabad and Mumbai divisions. “Passengers are happy with the system as it is transparent. It also deters thieves who purchase unreserved tickets as it did not require them to give their personal details,” S R Gandhi, senior divisional security commissioner, Western Railways <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/mumbai/western-railway-gets-biometric-token-system/article28703241.ece">told </a>The Hindu. Indian Railways has been pushing for a more passenger-friendly experience. The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) introduced a ‘Vikalp Scheme’ for the passengers who have been on the waiting list to get their tickets confirmed. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indian-railways-vikalp-scheme-allows-passengers-to-board-an-alternate-train-and-avoid-the-waiting-list/articleshow/70379177.cms">Indian Railway’s vikalp scheme allows passengers to board an alternate train — and avoid the waiting list</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indian-railways-is-hiring-nearly-300000-candidates/articleshow/70189926.cms">Indian Railways is on an aggressive recruitment drive to hire 300,000</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indian-railways-introduce-buzzing-bees-to-keep-elephants-away-from-train-tracks/articleshow/70169025.cms">Indian Railways introduce ‘buzzing bees’ to keep elephants away from train tracks</a>

Indian Railways is using biometrics to reduce and track unreserved passengers

<ul class="summary-list"><li>As King Charles III takes the throne, Prince William is one step closer to becoming king himself.</li><li>It's a destiny that William has been preparing for since childhood.</li></ul>Prince William is now <a href="https://www.insider.com/queen-death-charles-king-changes-line-of-succession-british-throne-2022-9">one step closer to the British throne</a> — a role he's been preparing for his whole life.As heir, William was put through years of training to ensure the survival of the British monarchy. But one fact cannot be ignored: His two teachers — King Charles III and the late <a href="https://www.insider.com/queen-elizabeth-ii-death-obituary-2022-9">Queen Elizabeth II</a> — are of different eras. By the time he reaches the throne, William's training could be woefully out of date.Since his grandmother's coronation in 1953, the world outside of Buckingham Palace's gates has changed considerably. Society has seen massive sociological and cultural shifts brought about by civil-rights movements and reforms in gender equality and LGBTQ rights, to name a few. During the late Queen Elizabeth's reign, <a href="https://www.historyextra.com/period/21st-century/queen-elizabeth-reign-changes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">17 countries also removed their monarchies</a> and became republics.Charles, now 74, becomes the oldest monarch to ever assume the British throne. Royal experts such as Marlene Koenig believe Charles knows "his time is shorter" in the role and sees himself as <a href="https://www.insider.com/king-charles-caretaker-of-throne-for-prince-william-expert-says-2022-9">a caretaker of the throne for William</a>.Still, public support for the monarchy is at an all-time low. Published days after the Queen's death, a <a href="https://natcen.ac.uk/news/british-social-attitudes-monarchy" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">study from the National Centre for Social Research</a> found that 55% of the British people surveyed believe it's "important for Britain to continue to have a monarchy." As the study notes, that figure is the lowest on record since it began in 1983.As such, the task of ensuring the monarchy not only survives but thrives in the 21st century rests heavily on William's shoulders. But experts say to pull it off, he'll need to keep up with changing times. <h2>William has been trained to lead an outdated monarchy</h2><div type="image" title="The royal family gather on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in London for the Trooping the Colour ceremony, June 1989." height="3731" width="4975" msid="99979751" hostid="261"></div>In William's childhood, Princess Diana did her best to shield him from the fact he would one day be king. He had "genuinely no idea" of his destiny until he started school, <a href="https://www.insider.com/princess-diana-overshadowed-charles-biographer-andrew-morton-says-2022-11">Andrew Morton</a> wrote in his 2011 book, "William and Catherine: Their Lives, Their Wedding," according to <a href="https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/1127387/royal-news-prince-william-kate-middleton-prince-george-find-out-king-spt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Express</a>. But William's future was always a looming specter. As time passed, William became fully aware of his future through regular mentorship with the Queen as a teenager, <a href="https://people.com/royals/how-prince-william-trained-to-be-king-as-a-teen-amid-the-queens-at-times-prickly-relationship-with-charles/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">People</a> reported. As he entered adulthood, the gravity of his future became crystal clear.After graduating from the University of St. Andrews in 2005 and spending a few years at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, William went on to complete a two-year intensive training course in the art of being king, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1038961/The-Royal-Apprentice-Prince-Williams-year-training-programme-king.html">The Daily Mail</a> reported in 2008.The program was devised by the Queen and Charles to teach William about the British government through lessons in constitutional law and navigating high-profile meetings, including one with the former Prime Minister John Major, the publication added. <div type="image" title="Prince William makes a speech during a reception to mark the launch of Centrepoint's 40th anniversary on November 6, 2008 in London, England." height="2560" width="3424" msid="99979755" hostid="261"></div>Outside of training, William made strides in his 20s to fulfill the traditional expectations of a monarch. He <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-william-and-kate-middleton-love-story-anniversary-2017-4">married Kate Middleton</a> in 2011, and the couple has <a href="https://www.insider.com/kate-middleton-and-williams-kids-make-princess-diana-mothers-day-cards-2021-3">three children</a>, ensuring there'll be a future heir (and spares).All the while, William increasingly showed a willingness to take on more royal duties, sometimes at the cost of his own personal ambition. As <a href="https://www.harpersbazaar.com/celebrity/latest/a12436330/prince-william-king-training/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Harper's Bazaar reported</a>, William stepped down from his role as an ambulance pilot in order to focus on his duties.Now, Charles' coronation brings William another step closer to the throne, and he's taken on even more royal duties recently. Following Queen Elizabeth's death, William inherited a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prince-william-inherits-british-property-estate-worth-over-1-billion-2022-9?r=US&amp;IR=T">$1 billion property estate</a> from Charles and was named the Prince of Wales, a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the throne, <a href="https://www.kristenmeinzer.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Kristen Meinzer</a>, a royal watcher, told Insider.She also said William's increasing responsibilities were compounded by factors such as Prince Harry and <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-andrew-stepping-away-royal-2019-11">Prince Andrew stepping away from their royal duties</a> in recent years.<h2>Royal training hasn't shielded William from mistakes</h2>Under the mounting responsibilities he's shouldering, William — like the heir before him — has made several missteps. One of his biggest PR controversies over the past few years includes his and Kate's <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-william-kate-middleton-tour-adapt-monarchy-future-2022-3">disastrous royal tour of the Caribbean</a> in 2022.Intended to be in celebration of <a href="https://www.insider.com/queen-platinum-70-anniversary-on-throne-buckingham-palace-plans-2021-6" rel="">Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee</a>, William and Kate came across to many as the poster children of the monarchy's colonial past. Stops on the tour were canceled due to protests demanding reparations for slavery and the couple faced backlash after photos of them <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/prince-william-kate-middleton-fence-photos-spark-backlash-jamaica-everything-about-this-wrong-1691048" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">greeting children through holes in a wire fence</a> in Jamaica were released, Newsweek reported.<div type="image" title="Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Prince William, Duke of Cambridge watch a flypast to mark the centenary of the Royal Air Force from the balcony of Buckingham Palace on July 10, 2018 in London, England." height="1104" width="1591" msid="99979757" hostid="261"></div>In February 2021, William — who is president of the Football Association — faced criticism after condemning "racist abuse" when a handful of British players were sent hateful messages online. Several royal commentators like <a href="https://twitter.com/kristenmeinzer/status/1355935155492429824" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meinzer</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/alywalansky/status/1355939439680356358" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aly Walansky</a> questioned why he wasn't willing to take a stand against racism when it came to his own family since his sister-in-law <a href="https://www.insider.com/racism-british-media-meghan-markle-prince-harry-royal-step-back-2020-1">Meghan Markle has dealt with racism</a> from British tabloids since she started dating Harry in 2016.Since 2019, William has also faced cheating rumors when British tabloids speculated about a fallout between William and Kate and their friend and neighbor, Rose Hanbury, the Marchioness of Cholmondeley, <a href="https://www.gawker.com/celebrity/why-everyone-is-calling-prince-william-the-prince-of-pegging" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gawker</a> reported.While nothing substantiated ever arose, rumors resurfaced in July 2022 when the celebrity-gossip Instagram account Deux Moi posted a blind item from an anonymous submitter alleging that an unnamed member of the royal family was having an affair that was an "open secret," <a href="https://www.thecut.com/2022/07/prince-of-pegging-trends-with-prince-william-affair-why.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Cut</a> reported at the time.Neither Kensington Palace nor Buckingham Palace addressed the rumors, but The Cut reported that the palace had considered legal action against Deux Moi after the report. Kensington Palace and Buckingham Palace did not respond to Insider's request for comment.More recently, William's reputation took a hit when Harry published his memoir, "Spare." In the book, <a href="https://www.insider.com/wildest-things-prince-harry-said-about-prince-william-in-spare-2023-1">Harry made several claims about William</a> that confirmed reports of <a href="https://www.insider.com/photos-prince-harry-william-rift-through-the-years-2023-3">a rift existing</a> between the pair for years. One of the most devastating allegations in the book was that <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-harry-new-book-william-physically-attacked-2023-1">William physically attacked</a> his younger brother in 2019 during a confrontation about Meghan. (Kensington Palace also did not respond to Insider's request to comment on this matter.)<h2>William's 'never complain, never explain' strategy might not work in the long run</h2><div type="image" title="Prince Harry and Prince William on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on July 10, 2018, in London, England." height="695" width="927" msid="99979759" hostid="261"></div>In response to the controversy, William has mostly stuck to the royal mantra of "never complain, never explain" — much like his father and grandmother.In the face of the allegations Harry made toward him in "Spare" — as well as in his <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-harry-prince-william-relationship-netflix-series-2022-12">Netflix docuseries</a> and several <a href="https://www.insider.com/everything-prince-harry-said-about-william-kate-in-tv-interviews-2023-1">TV interviews</a> — William has mostly been silent.A recent exception was William's spokesperson indirectly responding to the <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-william-responds-to-lady-susan-resignation-2022-11">resignation of Lady Susan Hussey</a>, a close friend to the royal family and the prince's godmother, who was accused of making racist <a href="https://www.insider.com/buckingham-palace-says-staff-member-resigned-after-unnacceptable-comments-2022-11">remarks</a> about a Black guest at a Buckingham Palace event in November 2022.The Kensington Palace spokesperson didn't name <a href="https://www.insider.com/former-palace-lady-in-waiting-susan-hussey-never-paid-salary-2022-11">Hussey</a>, a former lady-in-waiting, but said the comments were "unacceptable" and they were "really disappointed to hear about the guest's experience."Leaning into this unforthcoming strategy may have worked in the short term. A poll conducted by Ipsos Mori, shared by <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/royal-family/2023/01/19/prince-william-princess-kate-popularity-plunges-spare-book/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Telegraph</a> in January, showed that 53% of 1,000 people between the ages of 18 and 75 polled in the UK still felt favorably toward the royal family in the aftermath of "Spare." William and Kate remained the most popular royals, with favorable ratings of 61% and 60%, respectively.But as young people in the UK are losing faith in the monarchy, that strategy may only take William so far. <a href="https://docs.cdn.yougov.com/mcn5c6fr93/BBCPanorama_RoyalFamily_230417_w.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A YouGov</a> opinion poll of 4,592 adults, <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-65326467" target="_blank" rel="noopener">commissioned by the BBC</a>, found a growing dissatisfaction with the monarchy, particularly among Gen Z. Those polled between the ages of 18 and 24 were only 32% in favor of a monarchy — a big drop from the 59% in favor among the same age bracket when YouGov conducted <a href="https://yougov.co.uk/topics/society/articles-reports/2022/06/01/platinum-jubilee-where-does-public-opinion-stand-m" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the same poll in 2011</a>.<div type="image" title="Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge smile as they attend the inaugural Commissioning Parade for service personnel from across the Caribbean who have recently completed the Caribbean Military Academy’s Officer Training Programme, at the Jamaica Defence Force on day six of the Platinum Jubilee Royal Tour of the Caribbean on March 24, 2022 in Kingston, Jamaica." height="3380" width="5000" msid="99979762" hostid="261"></div>Some royal experts say William must show he's willing to try new approaches to lead a monarchy that's losing its touch and ensure it can exist in a modern-day society that values transparency.Meinzer said William is showing glimpses that he's open to change, citing the Caribbean royal tour as an example. <a href="https://twitter.com/KensingtonRoyal/status/1508054350714781699" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kensington Palace's tweets</a> after the tour, where William was <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/world/jamaica-queen-kate-william-slavery-b2043248.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">criticized by protesters</a>, who said he didn't take "responsibility" for the monarchy's role in slavery, highlighted his willingness to carve a new way forward, she added.The tweet appeared to be written by William and said that for him and Kate, the tour "brought into even sharper focus questions about the past and the future.""What matters to us is the potential the Commonwealth family has to create a better future for the people who form it, and our commitment to serve and support as best we can," he added in part. For Meinzer, William's words spoke to his understanding and desire to see the monarchy progress. "William has come to realize that he has to be a different kind of monarch than his grandmother — one that acknowledges the transgressions of the monarchy and the desires of his subjects," she said.<h2>William's readiness to reinvent the monarchy is still up for debate</h2>Experts are torn on whether William will be a changemaker as king or simply uphold tradition.The royal historian and author <a href="https://lesliecarroll.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Leslie Carroll</a> told Insider she thinks William will stick to old rules set out by <a href="https://www.insider.com/who-are-the-firm-the-royal-institution-the-royal-family">the firm</a>, a nickname for the royal family, rather than forge a new path."From my vantage, I'm seeing William's character evolving to become more like his father," she said. "I've seen nothing change in terms of the royal family's relationship with the press, through whom they funnel all their complaining and explaining.""He once declared, 'My mother was the people's princess.' I want to be 'the people's king.' I see him moving away from that sentiment, which is really unfortunate," Carroll added.The royal watcher Amanda Matta — who makes <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@matta_of_fact" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">educational videos about the royals on TikTok</a> — shared a similar view."Let's just say that I've seen no evidence that he's ready to be king," Matta, who has over 1.2 million followers, said in an email to Insider.While Charles made a point of laying out the priorities he'd focus on as king during his tenure as the Prince of Wales — namely environmental sustainability and social issues — Matta said William has yet to take a firm stance on topics such as the royal family's <a href="https://www.insider.com/british-royal-family-racist-history-black-lives-matter-2020-8">connection to historical slavery and racism</a> that can no longer go unaddressed. William has shown a dedication to the environment by launching the <a href="https://www.insider.com/prince-william-jfk-inspired-royal-earthshot-prize-contest-2020-10">Earthshot Prize Awards</a> and denouncing <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prince-william-duke-of-cambridge-overpopulationruining-wildlife-tusk-trust2017-11?r=US&amp;IR=T">wildlife poaching</a>, but he has yet to approach other topics with the same vigor. <div type="image" title="Prince William, Prince of Wales at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, to lay a wreath at the monument dedicated to Polish soldiers who lost their lives in conflict, during day two of his visit on March 23, 2023 in Warsaw, Poland." height="3400" width="4533" msid="99979764" hostid="261"></div>"I've never gotten the sense that there's a fire under Prince William that is driving him to address these topics," Matta added. "He may very well want to forge a new path for the monarchy in the 21st century, but we haven't gotten a true look at what that may entail."Matta said it's clear William's task of modernizing the monarchy will be a tipping point, one filled with pressure but also potential. "I can see William rising to that challenge, but it will take immense focus and an ability to rise above palace squabbling," she said. Meinzer is also optimistic, saying confidently, "He's ready. And the public would embrace him — embrace him more readily, in fact, than they're currently embracing Charles."While Charles is king, William still has time to decide what kind of monarch he will be — but he won't have as long as his father did to figure it out.This story is part of "Charles in Charge," our package of stories all about King Charles' coronation. Read the rest <a href="https://www.insider.com/king-charles-iii-coronation-england-british-monarchy-2023-5">here</a>.

Prince William has prepared to be king his entire life but his outdated training won't serve him &mdash; or the monarchy &mdash; when he takes the throne

This July, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/transportation/trains/indian-railways-just-got-its-first-make-in-india-train-rake/articleshow/57715819.cms">Indian Railways</a> is planning to launch a special double-decker, AC train service for overnight journeys on popular routes. Christened as the <keyword id="4451634" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="utkrisht-double-decker-ac-yatri-express">Utkrisht Double-Decker AC Yatri Express</keyword>, or <keyword id="3691812" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="uday-express">Uday Express</keyword>, the train will only have comfortable reclining chairs as against the general practice of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/transportation/trains/from-berth-availability-to-platform-number-this-app-will-address-all-train-related-issues-soon/articleshow/58324868.cms">sleeper berths</a>. Equipped with hot food and beverage vending machines, LCD television screens, and wi-fi enabled headphones, each coach will have a capacity of 120 people. Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/railways-eyeing-revenue-from-digital-ads/articleshow/58337826.cms">Ad screens at stations would earn railways revenue of Rs 10000 crore</a> Talking about the fare, it would be lower than that of the 3AC class in regular mail and express trains, even as the amenities provided would be better in comparison. The coaches will also have bio-toilets, and the interiors would sport a <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/life/These-photos-of-the-Indian-Railways-Luxury-Make-in-India-coaches-will-make-you-want-to-ditch-the-airlines/articleshow/50562953.cms">modern look</a>. Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/railways-plan-to-promote-tourism-in-luxury-and-budget-sections/articleshow/58206522.cms">Railways plan to promote tourism in luxury and budget sections</a> (Image source EnteCity)

Indian Railways to launch special double-decker overnight AC trains on high-demand routes

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Nine states held a mix of presidential, congressional and other down-ballots on Tuesday, June 2, the biggest election day yet since the coronavirus pandemic began and an important test for November.</li><li>Several states, like Michigan, Montana, and Iowa have been able to smoothly transition to massively scaling up their absentee and vote-by-mail systems.</li><li>But other states and cities, including Pennsylvania, Maryland, and D.C., failed to ensure every voter could cast a ballot despite ambitious efforts to encourage everyone to vote by mail if possible. </li><li>Voters in all three places reported not receiving their mail-in ballots in time, getting incorrectly printed or confusing ballots, and facing long lines, often with heavy law enforcement presence nearby, at crowded city polling locations. </li><li>"Pennsylvania voters faced unnecessary hurdles to the ballot at every turn in this primary election," a <keyword id="43546" type="EVENT" weightage="60" keywordseo="Voting">voting</keyword> rights advocate said.</li></ul>If the June 2 elections were a stress test for November, many states and cities exposed glaring failures, with millions of absentee ballots not reaching voters in time, ballots being incorrectly printed or containing errors when they did reach voters, and others who did not get ballots in time despite risking their health to wait in long lines at polling places.Nine states held a mix of presidential, congressional and other down-ballots on Tuesday, June 2, the biggest election day yet since the coronavirus pandemic began and the first large-scale test run in some states of preparing for November elections. To be sure, many states have been able to scale up to holding elections smoothly and with great success. But Tuesday shows that this kind of large-scale shift in a country where the majority of voters are used to voting in-person on election day presents may challenges.Montana, which already has high levels of mail-in voting, sent every voter a mail-in ballot for their Tuesday primaries and saw exceptionally high turnout for a primary in a pandemic, <a href="https://www.voteathome.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/2020-Primary-turnout.pdf">with 63% of voters returning their ballots.</a>Iowa, which sent out an absentee ballot application to every registered voter on Tuesday, set a new record for voter turnout in June elections. "We have surpassed the all-time turnout record for a June primary, with more than 487,000 ballots cast &amp; more still coming in," Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, <a href="https://twitter.com/IowaSOS/status/1268027779372761088">wrote on Twitter</a>. "The previous high in Iowa was 449,490 in 1994. My hats off to Iowa voters, poll workers and county auditors. Awesome job."In the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, which all held presidential and down-ballot primaries on Tuesday, a similar pattern emerged: state officials made ambitious efforts to encourage all voters to cast ballots by mail if possible, but struggled to meet the massive demand for mail-in ballots.Then, voters who didn't receive ballots at or didn't get them in time to mail in had to risk exposing themselves to COVID-19 voting in person, often waiting in long lines to vote at understaffed and crowded polling places and in some cities, feeling intimidated by heavy police or even National Guard presence brought in to control crowds in cities like D.C. and Philadelphia. <div type="image" title="People wear masks as they wait in line to vote at a voting center during primary voting in Washington, Tuesday, June 2, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)" height="2736" width="5472" msid="76235424" hostid="261"></div><h2>The mismanagement of elections in D.C. and Maryland are prompting hearings, investigations, and calls for officials to resign</h2>In Washington, DC, the confluence of the immense strain of the pandemic and civil unrest in the city led to confusion about where to vote, long lines, and confusion about whether voting would violate an emergency curfew, leading to an election <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/06/dc-election-curfew-police-long-lines.html">that Slate called "an unmitigated disaster"</a> with Politico describing one polling station as <a href="https://twitter.com/ZachMontellaro/status/1267972235337310209">a "failure of democracy." </a>Before coronavirus struck the nation's capitol, D.C. allowed all registered voters to vote by mail without an excuse and elect to do so permanently.In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the District strongly encouraged voters to request mail-in ballots for the June 2 presidential and city council primary elections while drastically reducing the number of open polling places from the usual 144 vote centers that would ordinarily be open to just 20. But D.C. had significant problems with scaling up their mail-in voting as 92,000 voters requested ballots, a massive increase from the 7,321 D.C. residents <a href="https://electionresults.dcboe.org/election_statistics/2016-Primary-Election">who voted by mail in the 2016 presidential primary</a>.Both media outlets <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/voters-report-difficulty-getting-mail-in-ballots-for-dcs-tuesday-primary/2020/06/01/cfc78bda-a3fe-11ea-bb20-ebf0921f3bbd_story.html">like the Washington Post</a>, and <a href="https://twitter.com/CM_Silverman/status/1267950476810760192">several city councilmembers</a> reported hearing from thousands of D.C. voters — including many who requested ballots far in advance — that they did not receive their ballots at all or until the day of the election. In addition to the drastic reduction in polling places, the protests against police brutality and the resulting massive influx of federal law enforcement presence led the city to impose a curfew of 7 p.m., despite the fact that polls didn't close for another hour until 8 p.m. Voting rights advocates immediately expressed concern with the city imposing a curfew before polls closed. The non-partisan Campaign Legal Center <a href="https://campaignlegal.org/sites/default/files/2020-06/June%202%202020%20CLC%20Letter%20to%20Mayor%20Bowser%20.pdf">wrote a letter to Mayor Muriel Bowser's office</a> warning that the conflicting messages would confuse many would-be voters into thinking they couldn't go out and cast a ballot, in addition to voters not having a clear way to identify themselves to law enforcement while traveling to and from the polls. As the letter noted, the polls closing after curfew combined with a heavy law enforcement presence in the city would disproportionately affect black voters, who were more likely to live in council wards with lower rates of absentee ballot requests. While the mayor's office sent out a cell-phone alert to all D.C. residents on the day of the election clarifying that essential workers and people in line to vote would be exempt from the curfew, voters in multiple different wards of the city <a href="https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/06/dc-election-curfew-police-long-lines.html">reported being reprimanded by law enforcement for being out past curfew. </a>"The problems that we warned of in our letter, unfortunately, did come to pass," Ravi Doshi, senior voting rights counsel at the CLC, told Insider in a Thursday phone interview. "Having law enforcement near a voting site is quite obviously intimidating to voters and it can very well dissuade voters from exercising their fundamental right to vote. It's exactly why we thought it would be problematic for a curfew to be imposed before voting ends." Maryland, which held its June 2 primary elections almost entirely by mail by sending every registered voter a mail-in ballot, also experienced numerous problems in getting correct ballots out to voters and processing them on the other side, the <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/elections/bs-md-ci-rutherford-calls-on-lamone-to-resign-20200603-4gxpb2jzuba6bnxxyuxexawd44-story.html">Baltimore Sun</a> reported. Maryland and SeaChange, the vendor the state used to provide their mail-ballots, pointed fingers at each other for problems and mix-ups <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/elections/bs-md-pol-ballots-vendor-20200529-ybrayxk5rfcwzpoepy7pmxeocq-story.html">that delayed the arrival of 333,000 Maryland ballots</a> and led to some <a href="https://www.postandcourier.com/politics/after-charleston-absentee-ballots-found-in-maryland-sc-considers-cutting-ties-with-printer/article_1da1a578-9ad8-11ea-a600-d3ff845d1c9b.html">being mistakenly sent to South Carolina, which uses the same vendor. </a>Not only did some Baltimore and Montgomery County voters not get their ballots in time, leading to some areas opening <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/elections/bs-md-pol-ballots-vendor-20200529-ybrayxk5rfcwzpoepy7pmxeocq-story.html">new polling places and ballot drop-boxes at the last minute</a>, but voters reported receiving ballots with <a href="https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/local/dc/dc-maryland-voting-coronavirus-pandemic/65-1a3b3d88-1dea-4017-b390-a77a9185cfaa">the wrong election date</a> and <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/bs-md-pol-election-ballot-congress-7th-district-20200415-tt6tnszoujdttbxm6t3bz6zehi-story.html">incorrect postage instructions.</a>And on the night of the election itself, <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/elections/bs-md-pol-vote-canvassing-begins-20200604-bxvmnntogrbndjjtfoy5kzmlwq-story.html#nws=true">a printing error for ballots sent to residents of one Baltimore City Council district</a> meant that the ballots themselves could not be immediately processed, and the results had to be taken offline and completely redone over the next few days. Like D.C. and other big cities, the problems with Maryland's execution of an all-mail election that drove voters who didn't get their ballots in time went to go vote in person in Baltimore, which also had fewer polling places and ballot drop-boxes open to voters than normal. The myriad problems in both places led to unprecedented calls for investigations, hearings, and the top election officials in Maryland, Baltimore, and D.C. to step down for their positions, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/tuesday-is-election-day-in-dc-though-much-of-the-voting-has-already-happened/2020/06/01/f9738568-a437-11ea-b619-3f9133bbb482_story.html">the Washington Post</a> and <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/elections/bs-md-ci-rutherford-calls-on-lamone-to-resign-20200603-4gxpb2jzuba6bnxxyuxexawd44-story.html">Baltimore Sun</a> reported.Lt. Governor Boyd Rutherford, for example, called for Linda Lamone, the administrator of the Maryland Board of Elections who has served in the position since 1997, <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/politics/elections/bs-md-ci-rutherford-calls-on-lamone-to-resign-20200603-4gxpb2jzuba6bnxxyuxexawd44-story.html">to be fired or step down from the position. </a>In addition to calling for D.C. Board of Elections Chair Michael Bennett to step down (<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/voting-problems-in-dc-maryland-lead-to-calls-for-top-officials-to-resign/2020/06/03/24b47220-a5a8-11ea-b619-3f9133bbb482_story.html">he told the Post he would not</a>), multiple councilmembers are <a href="https://twitter.com/CM_Silverman/status/1268311635837370368">asking for independent audits</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/charlesallen/status/1268256957233856517">are already scheduling hearings</a> into what went wrong. But voting rights experts like Doshi said that while the unprecedented civil unrest and heavy federal law enforcement presence threw a wrench into election day in some cities, many of the stumbles plaguing D.C.'s election were ultimately avoidable. "The broader picture here is that Tuesday's problems in D.C. weren't exclusively related to the curfew overlapping with election day," Doshi said. "A lot of these issues arose from COVID-19 and the fact that the city was underprepared to hold an election during the pandemic."<div type="image" title="Marty Goetz, right, and Diane White, prepare the voting screens as they start to set up a polling place Monday, June 1, 2020, for the voting for Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary in Jackson Township near Zelienople, Pa. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)" height="1500" width="3000" msid="76235428" hostid="261"></div><h2>'We saw a variety of failures on Tuesday'</h2>Despite weeks to prepare, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania had all the makings of the perfect storm <a href="https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/06/03/voting-problems-after-pennsylvania-primary-in-2020/">for a chaotic election day. </a>The state, which held its first-ever election with no-excuse absentee voting both during a pandemic and with heavy law enforcement presence in some major cities over the George Floyd protests, received 1.8 million absentee ballot requests, with county election officials struggling to meet the volume and thousands of voters not receiving ballots in time. But <a href="https://allvotingislocal.org/press-releases/voting-rights-leaders-pennsylvania-officials-must-prepare-now-for-the-november-election/">in a Thursday press briefing</a> hosted by several Pennsylvania-based voting access professionals, advocates expressed frustration and disappointment that after Pennsylvania having over two months to prepare for the election after postponing its primary from April 28 to Tuesday, so many voters were still disenfranchised."While it is laudable that Pennsylvania officials processed almost 2 million mail-in ballot applications, they fell short fulfilling their obligations to democracy," Scott Seeborg, the Pennsylvania State Director of advocacy group All Voting is Local, said. "Pennsylvania voters faced unnecessary hurdles to the ballot at every turn in this primary election."At the last minute on Monday, Gov. Tom Wolf <a href="https://www.governor.pa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/20200601-EO-Deadline-Extention.pdf">issued an executive</a> order extending the deadline for absentee ballots from voters in Philadelphia and five other counties that reported problems with voters not getting their ballots on time to arrive, allowing them to be counted if they are postmarked by Election Day and arrive by 5 p.m. on June 9."Even in ideal circumstances, which this was not, we knew there would be a steep learning curve," Sara Mullen of the Pennsylvania Civil Liberties Union said, adding, "It wasn't a surprise to find out that we heard of a lot of complaints from voters that they were not receiving ballots at all or received them too late."In Delaware County, which includes the suburbs immediately southwest of Philadelphia, Mullen said that the county was forthright in admitting that it sent out 6,000 mail-in ballots to voters the very day before the election on June 1 and failed to get ballots out to 400 voters who requested them. Mullen said that thousands of voters in York and Allegheny counties did not receive ballots at all despite requesting them weeks in advance, describing Montgomery County's election administration as a "comedy of errors," including people getting ballots for the wrong party in the primary, people not receiving ballots at all due to their apartment numbers being cut off on the envelope, and some containing confusing instructions. The police clashes with protesters and the COVID-19 crisis made voting an extra risky and frightening proposition for voters belonging to marginalized communities, said Erin Kramer, the executive director of advocacy group One Pennsylvania. "What we saw were consolidated polling locations in black communities that did not allow for social distancing, combined polling location staff that were not trained on how to work together, and in communities that had seen...a National Guard presence or local law enforcement armed with riot gear, people were asked to exercise their franchise in that context," Kramer said. "We saw a variety of failures on Tuesday."As Doshi of the Campaign Legal Center also pointed out, Pennsylvania and especially the counties that have extended absentee ballot arrival deadlines, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/06/05/key-swing-state-sweats-vote-counting-fiasco-304203">are still counting ballots from many elections</a> — a pattern Americans can expect to see more of throughout this year and in November. "In certain states, we don't have results for certain elections yet. That's something that we can expect to happen when you have this surge in absentee voting," he said. "Mail-in ballots are going to take a little bit longer to count. And so it doesn't indicate anything nefarious. It just indicates there's a good reason why it might take longer to get results."<div type="image" title="Pennsylvania elections" height="1000" width="2000" msid="76235433" hostid="261"></div><h2>November doesn't have to be a repeat scenario if officials act now</h2>In a Wednesday hearing before the House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Rights, election officials and voting rights activists expressed dismay at how some of Tuesday's elections unfolded."In 46 states and the District of Columbia, all voters have a right to request a mail-in ballot," Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said. "But as we saw yesterday, that right is implemented with varying degrees of effectiveness. This need is particularly acute in...historically disenfranchised communities where distrust in government is high."Both in the hearing and in a May 20 interview with Insider, Benson emphasized that the coronavirus crisis doesn't have to be a catastrophe for elections, and that Michigan and other states prove with the right preparation and planning, elections can still be secure, and run smoothly in a pandemic.In May 5th's local elections in Michigan, the state sent out absentee ballot requests to every voter with ballot-tracking, trained new election workers, invested in high-speed ballot processing machines to make the vote-counting process faster, and provide personal protective equipment to keep election officials and poll-workers safe. Myrna Pérez, the director of the Brennan Center for Justice's Democracy and Voting Rights program, <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/policy-solutions/how-protect-2020-vote-coronavirus">said there are several concrete steps states can take in advance to ensure every voter can cast a ballot</a>, including increasing funding to state and local election administrators, but given the many complex issues that popped up on Tuesday, they have to start acting now."It is indeed possible..to ensure our elections this fall are safe, accurate, and secure," Benson said, adding, "Educating voters about choices and rights is the job of chief election officers."

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You Searched For "mail express trains" and got 5 results

Cancelled trains drag IRCTC shares down by over 3%

Navdeep Yadav

Indian Railways is using biometrics to reduce and track unreserved passengers

Prerna Sindwani

Prince William has prepared to be king his entire life but his outdated training won't serve him or the monarchy &mdash; when he takes the throne

Maria Noyen

Indian Railways to launch special double-decker overnight AC trains on high-demand routes

BI India Bureau

Long lines, missing mail-in ballots and confusion this week exposed the problems that could plague the November election

Grace Panetta

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Prince William has prepared to be king his entire life but his outdated training won't serve him or the monarchy — when he takes the throne