New Delhi: Rahul Dravid, the outgoing head coach of the Indian cricket team, refused an additional ₹2.5 crore as bonus from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Dravid opted to take home only ₹2.5 crore, the same amount as the rest of his support staff.

"Rahul wanted the same bonus money (₹2.5 crore) as the rest of his support staff (bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, fielding coach T Dilip, and batting coach Vikram Rathore). We respect his sentiments," a BCCI source stated.

According to the BCCI's distribution formula, each of the 15 playing members of India’s T20 World Cup-winning squad and Dravid were to receive ₹5 crore from the ₹125 crore prize money. The support staff were allocated ₹2.5 crore each, while the selectors and the traveling members of the squad were set to receive ₹1 crore each.

This is not the first time Dravid has upheld such principles. In 2018, as head coach of India’s U-19 World Cup-winning team, he rejected a proposed bonus distribution that would have given him ₹50 lakh while awarding ₹20 lakh each to the support staff and ₹30 lakh each to the players. Dravid insisted on equal bonuses for everyone, resulting in a revised award of ₹25 lakh for each coaching staff member, including himself.

Dravid's tenure as head coach has been marked by consistency in selection and a deep connection with the players. Despite not winning a World Cup as a player, he achieved the milestone as a head coach with India’s T20 World Cup victory. His humility and leadership were evident when players, including captain Rohit Sharma and senior player Virat Kohli, celebrated Dravid’s contribution.

Rohit Sharma, who convinced Dravid to stay on for the T20 World Cup following India's loss in the ODI World Cup finals last year, praised Dravid's impact. "You are an absolute stalwart of this game, but you left all of your accolades and achievements at the door and walked in as our coach and came on a level where we all felt comfortable enough to say just about anything to you," Rohit wrote on Tuesday.

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New Delhi (PTI): With a new, stringent system to establish user identity, the number of new user IDs being added daily on the IRCTC website has declined to about 5,000 from nearly one lakh, officials said on Saturday.

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw noted that the crackdown by Indian Railways on train ticket booking through fake identities is yielding positive results, according to a press note.

Before the latest reforms, this number had touched nearly one lakh new user IDs per day, it said.

"Following the introduction of a stringent system to establish user identity and detect fake IDs, about 5,000 new user IDs are now being added daily on the IRCTC website," the note said.

The officials stated that these steps have already helped Indian Railways deactivate 3.03 crore fake accounts.

"Another 2.7 crore user IDs have either been temporarily suspended or identified for suspension based on the suspicious activities they are indulging in," they said.

The Union minister directed officials to ensure that the ticketing system is reformed to a level where all travellers are able to book tickets easily through a real and genuine user ID, the press note added.

Additionally, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has directed officials to provide local cuisine of the region in Vande Bharat trains.

Introducing local cuisine that reflects the culture and tastes of the regions being traversed will significantly enhance the passenger experience, officials said.

This facility will be expanded to all the trains progressively in future, they added.