Lalu to flag off cheaper e-ticketing fees

NEW DELHI: Railway minister Lalu Prasad is set to offer yet another sop to railway passengers. The e-ticketing charges for A/C and sleeper class will come down to Rs 25 and Rs 20 from existing Rs 40 and Rs 25 respectively. An announcement is expected next month. The slash in e-ticket charges will be over and above the fare reduction announced in the Rail Budget.

The Railways sells an average of 30,000 tickets through e-ticketing every day. With service rates coming down and demand for tickets expected to shoot up during the May-July season, Railways hopes to garner more revenue through e-ticketing. “People are increasingly taking to e-ticketing these days, it is far more convenient than standing in large queues to buy tickets. Moreover, the customers can choose what they need on the internet,” a senior Rail Bhawan official said.

According to the official, there would also be a mechanism put in place to curb bulk ticket-buying on the net. Instead, the railway ministry has identified Sify for marketing and selling e-tickets at its cyber cafes. “We are also about to tie up with few more players for e-ticketing,” he added. Moreover, for customers, the website is also protected against phishing. “Every webpage of the site is https enabled, which helps encryption of data. Therefore, every information of the customer especially related to credit card remains protected,” the official said.

According to the Internet and Mobile Association of India, last year, the sales of rail tickets were highest in Mumbai (25%) & Delhi (21%) followed by Chennai (8%), Bangalore (7%), Ahmedabad (2%) and Kanpur (2%). Non-metros like Allahabad, Bhopal and Guwahati are also catching up.

According to an IRCTC official, maximum ticket sales are recorded in February to March every year due to summer travel season. According to a data, 37% of e-ticket purchasers are in the 30-40 age group, whereas 36% are in the 18-30 age group.