In view of increased demand for rail e-tickets, railways have decided to increase the limit for online bookings per day from 3.5 lakh at present to about four lakh in the next four months and later to eight lakh.

"Both IRCTC and CRIS, railways IT wing are working jointly in this direction," minister of state for railways K H Muniyappa said on Tuesday.

Reviewing a meeting with railway board about steps taken to combat cases of black marketing and purchase of railway tickets by touts, he said during surprise checks 170 officers were identified conniving, of whom actions have been initiaited against 102 officials.

Actions initiated against them include penalties like removal and reversion from service, he said.

Between 2009-10 to 2011-12, railways carried more than 2 lakh surprise checks, apprehending 4200 touts and over 63 lakh realised from them, he said.

Muniyappa's statement comes in the wake of railways announcing a series of measures in the recent past to check misuse of tatkal scheme, which include starting tatkal booking at 10 am instead of 8 am.

The minister said that per day on an average around 15 lakh railway tickets are being sold through 8838 passenger reservation ticket counters and the e-ticketing website through IRCTC, out of which the Tatkal tickets constitutes around 1.70 lakh.

Meanwhile, sources in railway ministry said they are planning to make amendments in the RPF Act to make the penal provisions more stringent.

At present, offender booked under the Act is penalised Rs 10,000 or with an imprisonment of upto three years.

The thinking is that the touts are not deterred with the penalty as they make good use of the loopholes.

The railways now plan to increase the penalty and term of imprisonment. The amendment would also ensure that touts will not get bail before 24 hours.