Why Indian Railways’ airport-style baggage rules do not work in India
From December 2026, entry to platforms is expected to be granted only after luggage is cleared
Indian Railways’ decision to move towards airport-style baggage restrictions may be framed as ‘modernisation’, but in practice it is an ill-conceived policy that ignores the realities of India’s transport system.
The Railway Board plans to roll out electronic weighing systems at upgraded stations such as Prayagraj Junction, Kanpur Central and Aligarh Junction, where passengers will have to weigh their luggage before boarding. From December 2026, entry to platforms is expected to be granted only after luggage is cleared, with tickets acting like boarding passes.
Yet, this policy raises fundamental questions of feasibility. Railway stations in India handle a staggering 2 crore passengers every day — a number airports never come close to. Most stations are already bursting at the seams with overcrowding, long queues and inadequate facilities. Adding baggage checks at entry points risks creating gridlock, delaying trains and worsening passenger inconvenience.
More importantly, Indian Railways has not yet addressed its more pressing challenges. Touts, ticketless travel, overcrowded coaches, poor sanitation and outdated infrastructure continue to plague the system. Without fixing these longstanding issues, importing airport-style baggage rules looks like poor prioritisation, to put it mildly — a superficial prestige ‘solution’ to an issue no one asked to solve, while core problems remain untouched.
The policy also disproportionately affects ordinary passengers. While First AC travellers enjoy a 70 kg allowance, general passengers are restricted to just 35 kg.
For families, migrant workers and small traders — groups that form the backbone of India’s railway users, people who literally travel with their whole inventory and their entire lives on their backs at times — this could translate into hefty penalties or unaffordable charges that render the ticket pointless to buy. Train travel for this demographic has been the accessible mode of transport precisely because it is flexible and forgiving; now it risks becoming another burden for those least able to bear it.
This was the aspect Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav upheld in a social media post today, saying, “The day the public weighs the BJP’s sack of corruption, that day the BJP will derail… and that day is not far off now. Another chapter of corruption is being opened in the name of weighing passengers’ luggage on trains. This decision is against the poor.”
“What difference does it make to someone traveling in AC-1, but ask the poor person who goes home to their village once or twice a year and brings along dal, rice, and rations. Does the BJP now want to snatch even the food from the plates of poor labourers and farmers? The money-hungry BJP should collect whatever it wants from those in AC-1 and AC-2, not from those in General, Sleeper, or AC-3. If the railway’s treasury has been completely emptied during the BJP government’s rule, they should tell their MPs and MLAs to give up their free passes. The BJP’s corruption has hollowed out the railways,” the INDIA bloc leader taunted.
On the other side, for Railways staff, enforcement too would be a logistical nightmare. With thousands of trains and stations, ensuring consistency is nearly impossible. The potential for disputes, arbitrary charges and misuse of authority is high. Worse, stricter checks could push travellers into bypassing the system altogether, leading to undeclared cargo and (at least notional) revenue losses.
If the Railways truly wants to modernise, its priorities should be clear: tackle touting, decongest stations, upgrade sanitation, and expand capacity. Only after resolving these long-standing problems can ideas like stricter baggage rules even begin to make sense.
Until then, the proposal to mimic airports is not modernisation — it is a distraction from the urgent reforms passengers actually need.