LAHORE, March 19: Because of a lack of coordination between the old and the new (computerized) ticketing systems being run parallel to each other by the Pakistan Railways, there is a possibility of financial irregularities going undetected in this important department. Informed quarters say that the PR does not keep any record of the computerized tickets sold at its eight major reservation centres across the country.

The ticketing network at the PR centres at Peshawar, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan, Hyderabad, Karachi and Quetta is understood to be running parallel to the old ticketing system, and is prone to financial embezzlement.

According to the PR officials, the new network is being regulated by the PR’s information technology (IT) department, which is answerable directly to the Railway Board and its chairperson, and not working under the railways passenger business unit or any other officer at the headquarters office in Lahore. The computerized tickets are made available to the eight reservation centres by the IT department without making relevant entries in the record being maintained by the PR’s passenger business unit. Its database is also not available to the business unit which has no other source to verify the supply and sale of the computerized tickets involving millions of rupees transactions every day.

Certain officers in the passenger business units feel that because of this lack of coordination between the two PR systems, they will not be able to detect any possible fraud as and when it takes place.