No, Indian Railways Has Not Reinstated Concessions for Senior Citizens
Social media users are sharing posts related to a 'Senior Citizen Train Ticket Exemption' scheme, claiming that the Indian Railways (IR) has introduced a new policy, giving those aged 58 and above up to 50 percent off on their train tickets.
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It adds several points from this alleged policy, providing different rates of concession for different seat classes for senior citizens.
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The post also mentions the benefits of booking under this policy, such as availing medical assistance, getting priority berth allocation, and wheelchairs.
An archived version of this post can be seen here.
(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)
(Archived versions of more claims on social media can be seen here and here.)
Is it true?: No, the viral claim is false.
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Indian Railways had suspended the senior citizens' concession in 2020 and has not reinstated it since.
How did we find out the truth?: We started by running a keyword search with the term 'Senior Citizen Train Ticket Exemption', but did not find any credible reports confirming the existence of this scheme or policy.
The policy providing a discount for senior citizens on their tickets was suspended amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The policy was discontinued in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
(Source: IRCTC/Screenshot)
There were no recent announcements, notices, or circulars indicating that it had been reinstated.
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Responding to a question in the Parliament by CPI(M) leader S Venkatesan's query about reinstating this discount on 30 March 2022, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that IR was providing three types of concessions.
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These were limited to four categories of people with disabilities, eleven categories of patients, and students.
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"Cost of granting concessions weigh heavily on Railways, hence extending the scope of concessions to all categories of passengers including senior citizens is not desirable at present," Vaishnaw said.
The minister said that they would not be reinstating the senior citizens' discount.
(Source: Digital Sansad/Screenshot)
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In April 2023, the Supreme Court dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) was filed seeking reinstatement for these concessions for senior citizens, among others, as reported by several news organisations, including The Economic Times.
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The issue was raised in parliament again in November 2024 by BJP leader Babubhai Desai.
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In his response, Vaishnaw said that IR provided an average of a 46 percent concession for every traveller, but did not specify anything about reintroducing the senior citizens' concession.
Vaishnaw did not mention any concessions for senior citizens.
(Source: Digital Sansad/Screenshot)
Lastly, the 2025-26 Union Budget also does not state any schemes or policies which provide concessions for senior citizens while traveling by train.
Conclusion: A false claim about senior citizens being given concessions by the Indian Railways has gone viral.
(This story was originally published by thequint.com, and republished by english.varthabharati.in as part of the Shakti Collective)
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Messi scores, but Inter Miami only gets 2-2 tie with Austin FC in opener of new stadium
Miami (AP): Lionel Messi scored on the long-awaited opening night in his new home stadium. And Luis Suarez found a way to tie things up late in the second half.
It was good enough to salvage a point for Inter Miami.
Messi scored on a header in the 10th minute, Suarez hammered home a volley in the 82nd minute and Inter Miami escaped with a 2-2 tie against Austin FC in the defending MLS champions' first match at their still-under-construction stadium near Miami International Airport on Saturday night.
Inter Miami (3-1-2) is now unbeaten in its last five MLS matches, and Austin (1-2-3) is now winless in its last four contests.
MLS Commissioner Don Garber was at the match, lauding the work that David Beckham — who picked Miami 13 years ago — did to get to this day. Inter Miami is in its seventh MLS season, its third with Messi, but has played home matches in Fort Lauderdale until now.
Garber touted the stadium opening as the latest sign of growth for MLS.
“I think our best days are still ahead," Garber said. "David shined a light on our league, and Leo's taking that torch, and he's showing it around. And we're getting calls from players around the world.”
The Herons never led; Austin took a 1-0 lead on Guilherme Biro's goal — the first ever at Nu Stadium — in the sixth minute, and the visitors went up 2-1 when speedy reserve Jayden Nelson scored in the 53rd minute.
Messi and Suarez both got tying goals, and Inter Miami missed some chances for a potential winner in the final minutes. Maybe the best of the lot: Mateo Silvetti's chance in the 87th minute, when he accepted a cross from the right wing and tried to one-time the ball but sent it sailing high.
“We already know what Leo is capable of and the trouble he causes for the opposition, and even without the ball as well,” Inter Miami defender Maxi Falcon told Apple TV after the match. “And Luis, too — whenever he's inside the box, he's lethal, and he proved that once again.”
Suarez thought he scored in the 90th minute after a free kick from Messi, but the play was called offside. And Messi had a chance about three minutes later from inside the box, but Brad Stuver got low for a save diving to his left to keep the game knotted at 2-2.
Stuver said it was a great result, especially given the circumstances — against the MLS champs, who were opening their new stadium.
“We got to be the villains,” Stuver said.
Austin led much of the second half, after Nelson came on at intermission and gave his club a spark.
Nelson — who played for Vancouver against Inter Miami in last season's MLS Cup final — got behind the defense, avoided going offside and took a pass from Myrto Uzuni in the middle of the field about 30 yards from the goal.
He sent a low shot that got past charging Inter Miami goalie Dayne St. Clair and kissed off the inside of the left goalpost before settling into the net.
