Railways links up with DoT portal to help passengers recover stolen, lost mobile phones
New Delhi, April 3 (IANS) In a significant move to help passengers recover lost or stolen mobile phones, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) has successfully onboarded with the Central Equipment Identity Register (CEIR) portal of the Department of Telecommunication.
CEIR portal is DoT’s crucial digital tool to recover mobile phones by blocking the IMEI number, tracking and managing of lost or stolen devices.
This initiative follows the success of a pilot program in the Northeast Frontier Railway. The all-India roll out of this program across Indian Railways on Thursday would benefit millions of Railway Passengers.
In the inauguration launch and training programme for CEIR portal, RPF Director General Manoj Yadava said: “The collaboration of RPF with the Department of Telecommunication for operating CEIR portal marks a significant milestone in railway security. By harnessing digital technology, we aim to provide passengers with a transparent and effective mechanism to recover their lost or missing mobile phones. This initiative strengthens law enforcement capabilities and fosters greater trust among railway commuters. We remain committed to safeguarding passenger property and ensuring a secure travel experience across the railway network.”
By leveraging the CEIR portal, the RPF will now be able to render lost/missing mobile phones unusable by blocking their IMEI numbers, thereby deterring illegal possession and resale of these devices. This initiative will also facilitate the swift recovery of lost phones through advanced tracking capabilities, Yadava added.
RPF has been at the forefront of efforts to recover passenger property which is lost or missing in trains as well as station premises.
The RPF’s Operation Amanat was launched to help in returning the valuables to their rightful owners and has yielded impressive results. The RPF has been successful in recovering misplaced or left behind items worth Rs 84.03 crore between January 2024 and February 2025 returning them to more than 1.15 lakh grateful passengers.
The incorporation of CEIR into railway security operations is expected to further bolster the efforts of RFP to restore misplaced or left behind mobile phones to their rightful owners.
The integration of RPF with CEIR ensures a streamlined process for passengers reporting lost or stolen phones, according to an official statement.
Passengers can report lost or stolen mobile phones through the Rail Madad platform, either online or by dialling 139. If they choose not to file an FIR, they will be guided to register their complaint on the CEIR portal.
Zonal Cyber Cells of RPF will then register the complaint on the CEIR portal, entering the required details and blocking the device.
Once the lost phone is detected with a new SIM card, the user of the device will be advised to return it to the nearest RPF post. The rightful owner must then present supporting documents to reclaim the device
In case of non-compliance, an FIR can be lodged, and the matter escalated to the District Police. Upon recovery, the complainant can request to unblock the phone via the CEIR portal, with assistance from RPF if needed.
In May 2024, RPF began a pilot project in Northeast Frontier Railway to actively utilise the CEIR portal and to study its utility for RPF.
This experiment resulted in successful recovery of numerous lost mobile phones and apprehension of individuals involved in mobile theft. With this initiative being expanded all across the country, RPF is confident that it would be able to provide faster and more efficient recovery solutions for railway passengers.
–IANS
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