With the new data retention policy of Railways, parcel booking data will now remain safe for years. file photo
Amrish Manish Shukla, Prayagraj. Indian Railways is called the lifeline of the country. Now it has taken a revolutionary step towards making its parcel system transparent, hi-tech and accountable on the lines of modern courier services. Railway Board has decided to implement a new 'Data Retention Policy' for 'Parcel Management System' (PSS).
Relief for traders and travelers
After this historic change, railway employees will no longer be able to excuse themselves by saying that "the old record has been deleted from the system" or "the data is not available." This news is a relief for lakhs of traders and common people, who every year send crores of tonnes of goods from one city to another on the basis of railways.
Why was there a need for this strict policy?
The biggest flaw in the system till now was that the parcel booking data was deleted from the system after a certain time. The general public had to bear the brunt of this directly. If a customer's parcel went missing or was damaged, investigations would go on for months. When the matter was serious, employees would often close the file on the pretext of not having data.
Due to deletion of data, traders are not able to maintain their position firmly.
Old records are needed for court cases or insurance claims. Due to deletion of data, traders were not able to present their stand strongly. Because there was no fear of records going missing, it was sometimes easier to suppress negligence and irregularities at the departmental level. Recognizing all these loopholes, the Railway Board has now decided to preserve the digital evidence for 'years'.
Your data will be protected in two steps
Railways has prepared a 'two-tier architecture' to keep the data secure.
Active Tracking (First Six Months)
As soon as you book your parcel, its complete details (booking time, weight, destination, and current location) will be live on the main online server for 180 days (six months). During this period, customers will be able to get up-to-the-minute information about their luggage themselves or through the station master. It will be exactly like you track your order on a private courier company's app.
Data Warehousing (Next Five Years)
The data will not be destroyed even after six months have passed. It will be removed from the main server and sent to a special 'data warehouse' (digital warehouse). Here this data will remain safe for the next five years. Even after two years, if any audit, police investigation or court dispute arises regarding a parcel, the Railways will be able to extract the old records and present them with a single click.
Fixing 'deadline' to prevent negligence
Railways has not only secured the data, but has also made strict rules regarding parcel delivery: if a parcel is not delivered for three months after reaching the destination, it will mandatorily be sent to the 'Lost Property Office' (LPO). This will prevent piles of unclaimed luggage at stations and reduce the chances of luggage getting lost.
If there is any human error in reporting or data entry, only additional time of 15 days will be given to correct the same. After this, it will be almost impossible to make any changes in the records, which will maintain transparency.
Chris got big responsibility of training and manual
The responsibility of implementing this entire system has been given to CRIS (Centre for Railway Information System), the technical branch of the Railways. A training program will be prepared for railway clerks to officers so that they can understand the new system. A detailed manual will be created that tells employees how to maintain and recover data.
5 big benefits to the general public and businessmen
Now you will no longer have to fear that if your luggage is lost, the record will also be erased. Digital evidence will stay with you for five years.
Speed in claim settlement:
Claiming compensation in case of parcel loss will be easy as all the information will be available in the data warehouse.
When employees know that every entry made by them can be verified for five years, the scope for negligence will be reduced.
If any station employee does not help you, you can complain to senior officials or on the Rail Madad portal. Officials will now be able to catch the guilty employee by asking for data directly from the warehouse.
Facilities like modern banking:
Just as banks keep records of your old transactions, now Railways will also keep a similar record of your 'parcel transactions'.
Digital transformation of Indian Railways
This step by the Railway Board is not just a technological change, but it is a huge leap towards realizing the dream of 'Digital India' where accountability and transparency in government services is paramount. The phrase “data is not available” is now going to be a thing of history.
Preparation to implement in all zones
Preparations have started to implement it in all the zones across the country including Prayagraj division. This reform will not only increase the revenue of Railways but will once again establish Railways as the most reliable player in the courier market. Do you also frequently use railway parcels? Now book without any worries, because your booking record is now completely safe in the 'Digital Bagte' of Railways.
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