Indian Railways: Millions of people travel by train every day in India. The number of rail passengers increases even more during the festive and wedding seasons.
There was a time when passengers had to go to the ticket counter to get their bookings done. However, with India rapidly going digital, the demand for online ticket booking has increased.
The number of passengers booking tickets online is now many times more than those buying tickets over the counter. However, the price of online tickets is often higher than counter tickets.
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IRCTC Account Mandatory for Online Train Ticket Booking
You must have booked train tickets online at some point of time. You must have noticed that online tickets are more expensive than counter tickets.
\The special thing is that train tickets can be booked online only through IRCTC. Even if you use a third party app for booking, you must have an IRCTC account. Online ticket booking is not possible without an IRCTC account.
While booking online, IRCTC charges convenience fee and GST from the passengers. The convenience fee goes directly to the IRCTC account, while the GST amount goes to the government account.
Indian Railways: Why Online Train Tickets Cost More Than Counter Tickets?
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut raised a question in the Rajya Sabha about the higher price of online train tickets compared to counter tickets.
In response, Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw explained that IRCTC has to spend a lot to maintain, upgrade and expand its online ticketing system. To cover these costs, IRCTC charges a convenience fee from passengers when booking tickets online.
Indian Railways: 80% of Passengers Book Train Tickets Online
The Railway Minister said that IRCTC has become a highly preferred platform for train ticket booking across the country. He informed that currently, 80% of all train tickets are booked online.
The Minister highlighted that online ticket booking helps passengers avoid waiting in long queues at ticket counters. This not only saves their time but also reduces their travel expenses.
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