Railway passengers can “opt out” of IRCTC’s digital data monetisation plan

Railway passengers can “opt-out” of the digital data monetisation plan of the IRCTC, official sources told ET on Monday.

They also said the activity will strictly stay within “the confines of the law.”

This comes after privacy experts raised concerns over IRCTC's Expression of Interest to rope in a consultant to explore avenues for passenger data monetisation.


According to officials in the know, EY and KPMG have already shown willingness in being appointed as a consultant to IRCTC.

KPMG said it cannot comment on any company-specific matter, while EY did not respond to ET’s request for comment till press time Monday.

“A final decision on the way ahead for data monetisation will be taken at a much later stage. The goal of the consultant is just to help us figure out what are the organisations that can help us in getting things done,” an official said.

State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) may be roped in for communicating with targeted audiences as part of the plan in the future, the official added.

Another official clarified that monetising ‘digital assets’ did not mean storing the name and Aadhaar number, house address, PAN card, or bank details of the passenger.

It could just mean how many passengers generally travel on a particular train, how many choose the catering option, and so on. Therefore, he said, concerns over privacy infringement are completely unfounded.

“It is an Expression of Interest, it is not a tender,” the official said. “It is just a preliminary thing, where IRCTC has sought interest from prospective consultants wherein they would suggest the measures which IRCTC or Indian Railways can take to monetize their digital assets.”

The Expression of Interest is a stage that occurs before a tender is called.

It helps companies assess the availability of the service or goods providers and modify the prospective tenders as per the response.