With reference to the Supreme Court's order regarding railway insurance, consider the following statements: 1. The Railway Board is the body responsible for implementing the insurance mechanism. 2. The order follows a writ petition regarding a train accident in Odisha. 3. The deadline for including travel insurance on counter-sold tickets is October 2025. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Supreme Court orders Railways to include travel insurance on all counter-sold tickets by 2026

GS2Polity · Governance · IR· Health policy & public health· Prelims + Mains· 14 October 2026

Judicial activism and passenger safety: a GS2 case study on accountability and social justice.

Why in news

The Supreme Court ordered the Ministry of Railways to mandate travel insurance on all counter-sold tickets by October 2026 following a writ petition regarding a June 2023 Odisha train accident.

Background

A Bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and R. Mahadevan issued the order. The court warned that the Railway Board would be liable if the insurance mechanism is not implemented by the deadline.

Facts for Prelims

BodyRailway Board: The body responsible for the implementation of the insurance mechanism as per the SC order
FactDeadline: October 27, 2026, for including travel insurance on all counter-sold tickets
PlaceOdisha: The state where the June 2023 train accident occurred which led to the writ petition

Prelims practice question

With reference to the Supreme Court's order regarding railway insurance, consider the following statements:

The Railway Board is the body responsible for implementing the insurance mechanism.
The order follows a writ petition regarding a train accident in Odisha.
The deadline for including travel insurance on counter-sold tickets is October 2025.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a)1 only
(b)3 only
(c)1 and 2 only
(d)1, 2 and 3

Show answer

Answer: (c) 1 and 2 only — Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Statement 3 is incorrect: The deadline is October 27, 2026.

For Mains

Q. Examine the role of judicial activism in ensuring passenger safety and accountability in the Indian Railways. How can insurance frameworks mitigate the impact of rail accidents?

Dimensions to cover in your answer

Liability framework: Determining the extent of Railway Board's legal and financial accountability for passenger safety
Budgetary oversight: Addressing the judicial concern regarding the underutilization of allocated safety budgets

Keywords: Judicial Activism · Public Safety · Liability · Accountability · Railway Safety

Read the full news →Report a mistake in this note How notes are made Source: The Hindu ↗Also: GS2 · Judiciary & landmark judgments

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