The West Bengal Transport Undertakings ( Prevention Of Ticketless Travel ) Act, 1975

1. (1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Transport Undertakings (Prevention of Ticketless Travel) Act, 1975. (2) It extends to the whole of West Bengal.

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,— (a) "fare" means the amount payable for carriage of a person in a transport vehicle belonging to a Transport Undertaking; (b) "State Transport Undertaking" includes,— (i) the Calcutta State Transport Corporation, (ii) the North Bengal State Transport Corporation, and (iii) the Durgapur State Transport Corporation, established under section 3 of the Road Transport Corporations Act, 1950; (c) "Transport Undertaking" includes,— (i) any of the State Transport Undertakings, and (ii) the Undertaking of the Calcutta Tramways Company Limited; (d) "transport vehicle" means a public service vehicle as defined in clause (25) of section 2 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, belonging to a State Transport Undertaking or a passenger vehicle belonging to the Undertaking of the Calcutta Tramways Company Limited; (e) words and expressions used in this Act but not defined shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939.

3. No person shall travel in any transport vehicle without a proper ticket issued for the journey.

4. Every person travelling in a transport vehicle shall, upon payment of his fare, be supplied with a ticket for the journey which such person intends to perform or has already performed.

5. Any person who travels in a transport vehicle shall, whenever required by an employee of a Transport Undertaking not below the rank of a conductor or any other person not below the rank of a Sub-Inspector of Police, to be authorised by the State Government in this behalf, present his ticket to such employee or other person for examination.

6. (1) Any person who travels in a transport vehicle without having a proper ticket or having alighted therefrom fails or refuses to present his ticket for examination on requisition shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to two hundred and fifty rupees or with both and shall also be liable to pay the excess charge specified in sub-section (2), in addition to the actual fare, for the distance which he has travelled, or where there is any doubt as to the stage from which he started, the fare from the stage from which the passenger vehicle originally started, or from the place, if any, where the tickets were last examined, to the place where he was detected to be travelling without ticket. (2) The excess charge referred to in sub-section (1) shall be the actual fare for the distance referred to in that sub-section or a sum of rupees ten whichever is greater.

7. If an employee of a Transport Undertaking whose duty is— (1) to supply a ticket to a person travelling in a transport vehicle on payment of fare by such person, either wilfully or negligently,— (a) omits or refuses to accept the fare when tendered, or (b) omits or refuses to supply a ticket, or (c) supplies an invalid ticket, or (d) supplies a ticket of lesser value, or (2) to check any season ticket, either wilfully or negligently omits or refuses to do so, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to two hundred and fifty rupees or with both.

8. Any person, who travels or attempts to travel in a transport vehicle without having proper ticket with him or beyond the place authorised by his ticket or who, being inside a transport vehicle, fails or refuses to present his ticket for examination when required to do so, may be removed from such vehicle by an employee of the Transport Undertaking or any other person, authorised in that behalf or by any other person whom such employee or other person may call to his aid unless he then and there pays the fare.

9. If any person wilfully obstructs an employee of a Transport Undertaking or any other person, authorised under this Act, in the discharge of his duty, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or with fine which may extend to two hundred and fifty rupees or with both.

10. No Magistrate other than a Judicial Magistrate of the first class specially empowered for trying offences in a summary way shall try an offence punishable under this Act.

11. In the trial of offences punishable under this Act, the Magistrate shall follow the procedure laid down in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, for trial of offences in a summary way.

12. Any amount recovered by way of excess charge under section 6 shall be paid to the concerned Transport Undertaking.

13. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law.

14. The State Government may make rules for carrying out all or any of the purposes of this Act.

15. (1) The West Bengal Transport Undertakings (Prevention of Ticketless Travel) Ordinance, 1975, is hereby repealed. (2) Anything done or any action taken under the West Bengal Transport Undertakings (Prevention of Ticketless Travel) Ordinance, 1975, shall be deemed to have been validly done or taken under this Act as if this Act had commenced on the 26th day of September, 1975.