Lok Sabha Question No. 1312 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-12-14
Subject: Revenue of IRCTC
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Ganesan Selvam, Gajanan Chandrakant Kirtikar, Dhanush M Kumar, C.N. Annadurai, Manjulata Mandal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1312 TO BE ANSWERED ON 14.12.2022

## REVENUE OF IRCTC

1312.

SHRI SELVAM G. :

SHRI GAJANAN KIRTIKAR:

SHRI DHANUSH M. KUMAR:

SHRI C.N. ANNADURAI:

SHRIMATI MANJULATA MANDAL:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)    whether  the  revenue  earned  by  IRCTC  during  each  of  the  last  three years has drastically reduced and if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
- (b)  the revenue generated by IRCTC during the said period;
- (c)    the  estimated  number  of  rail  passengers  who  have  used  IRCTC  for booking train tickets during the last three years and the current year;
- (d)  the  new  features  introduced  by  IRCTC  for  rail  passengers  during  the above period;
- (e) whether any awareness programme has been launched among masses living in rural areas about booking of tickets through IRCTC and if so, the details thereof;
- (f)  whether IRCTC has lower valuation as compared to other e-commerce companies despite the monistic position, higher web traffic and sales;
- (g)  if so, the details thereof; and
- (h)    the  steps  taken  to  provide  quality  service  to  customers  and  also increase the revenue of IRCTC?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS &

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

- (a) to (h): A Statement is laid on the Table of  the House.

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STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (h)  OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1312 BY SHRI SELVAM G., SHRI GAJANAN KIRTIKAR,  SHRI  DHANUSH  M.  KUMAR,  SHRI  C.N.  ANNADURAI  AND SHRIMATI MANJULATA MANDAL TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 14.12.2022 REGARDING REVENUE OF IRCTC

(a) & (b): Yes, Sir. Revenue during FY 2020-21 has reduced drastically as  compared  to  FY  2019-20  due  to  travel  restrictions  imposed  during Covid -19 by the Government  of  India. However,  after lifting of restrictions and starting of cooked food in trains during FY 2021-22, the revenue again gradually increased.

## Total revenue for last three year is as under:

| Financial Year   |   Total Revenue ( ` In Cr.) |
|------------------|-----------------------------|
| 2019-20          |                     2342.41 |
| 2020-21          |                      861.64 |
| 2021-22          |                     1952.3  |

## (c) The estimated number of rail passengers who have used IRCTC for booking train tickets during the last three years and the current year is as under:

| Year                           |   Passengers (In lakhs) |
|--------------------------------|-------------------------|
| 2019-20                        |                 5229.63 |
| 2020-21                        |                 3052.67 |
| 2021-22                        |                 7343.26 |
| 2022-2023 (till 31 st October) |                 4607.63 |

(d):  Details are Appended.

(e):  IRCTC  has  launched  its  website  and  Rail  Connect  mobile  app  to reach out to the customers throughout the country. IRCTC authorized agents including Common Service Centers under rural areas also help in  reaching  IRCTC  services  to  the  remote  and  rural  areas  of  the country. (f) & (g): Apart from IRCTC, there are various key players across online ticketing, such as Makemytrip, Easemytrip, etc.  However, the business of  these  companies  cannot  be  compared  with  IRCTC,  due  to  the presence of the IRCTC in other segments such as Catering, Travel and Tourism and Railneer in addition to Internet Ticketing. The Company's market capitalization has, however, increased to Rs. 61,976 Crore as on 31st March, 2022 from Rs. 11,644 Crore  since its listing (14th October, 2019). (h):  Steps taken to provide quality service to customers and increase the revenue are appended.

*****

APPENDIX REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (d) & (h) OF LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1312 BY SHRI SELVAM G, SHRI GAJANAN KIRTIKAR,  SHRI  DHANUSH  M.  KUMAR,  SHRI  C.N.  ANNADURAI  AND SHRIMATI MANJULATA MANDAL TO BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 14.12.2022 REGARDING REVENUE OF IRCTC

## I - New Features introduced for rail passengers in catering & e-ticketing:

-  Upgradation of Base Kitchen/Kitchen Units undertaken.
-  CCTV  Cameras  have  been  installed  in  upgraded  Base  Kitchens /Kitchen Units for better monitoring of food preparation right at the source. Real time monitoring of the base  kitchens through Artificial Intelligence and sharing of live streaming.
-  Deployment of on board IRCTC supervisors on trains.
-  QR codes have been introduced on food packets enabling display of details like name of kitchen, date of packaging, expiry date etc.
-  Segregation of veg and non-veg food by means of stickers on food packets.
-  To  generate  printed  bills  and  invoice  reflecting  all  details  of transactions undertaken at catering units, hand held POS machines have been provided in catering units.
- 
- Awareness Campaigns launched:
- 
- MRP on all products- " No MRP, the licence get cancelled"
- 
- No Bill- The food is for FREE.
-  'No Tips' is stitched/displayed on the uniforms of service providers.
-  Third  Party  Audit  is  done  to  examine  hygiene  and  cleanliness  in Pantry  Cars  and  Kitchen  Units.  Customer  satisfaction  survey  is also conducted.
-  To  ensure  compliance  of  Food  Safety  Norms,  Food  Safety  and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) certification from Designated Food Safety Officers of each catering unit  has  been  made mandatory.

-  Food  Safety  Supervisors  have  been  deployed  at  Kitchen  Units  to monitor food safety and hygienic practices.
-  Regular and surprise inspections are conducted by Railway/ IRCTC officials including Food Safety Officers.

## II - Initiatives on e-ticketing:

1. Launch of IRCTC - SBI Cobranded Credit Card on Rupay Platform 28Jul-2020.

IRCTC and SBI have together launched a new Co-Branded Contactless Credit Card on RuPay Platform of NPCL.

-  The  Card  is  Designed  to  reward  Frequent  Railway  Travellers, wherein the new Co-Branded Credit Card offers the rail passengers maximum savings proposition on their travel together with exclusive benefits on retail, dining and entertainment as well as transaction fee waivers.
2. Loyalty Scheme for IRTC own Tejas Trains:  The Loyalty Scheme for Tejas  Trains  has  been  launched  w.e.f.  10.10.2020.  In  the  Loyalty Scheme,  benefits  will  be  given  to  the  passengers  who  book  their tickets  for  travelling  in  IRCTC  Tejas  Trains  by  using  IRCTC  SBI Cobranded Premier Card.
3. Launch of IRCTC New User Interface - 31-Dec-2020:

Salient features of New UI on website Mobile App are:

-  Customized Prompts for individual's (on login) Dashboard for Last Transaction,  Upcoming  Journeys,  booking  Meals,  Hotel  and Retiring Room.
-  Intelligent Journey and Stations Suggestions from Recent Searches / bookings: Display of Most booked stations and Routes by the individual (on login) or generally, first in the dropdown list of 'From Stations'.

4. E-Ticketing  Solution  for  Central  Paramilitary  Forces:  IRCTC  has developed e-ticketing application for Paramilitary Forces for booking  reserved  rail  e-tickets  to  their  personnel.  The  online ticketing system will bring a major relief to these Central Paramilitary Forces in handling their reserved train ticket requirements  and  also  from  cumbersome  manual  processes  for Railway Warrant management and their reconciliation and accounting between Indian Railways and Ministry of Home Affairs.
2.  E-ticketing system was commissioned for Assam Riffles for booking Reserved Rail e-tickets on 06-Oct-2020.
3.  E-ticketing system was commissioned for Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) for booking Reserved Rail e-tickets on 04-Feb-2022.
4.  E-ticketing  system  was  commissioned  for  Border  Security Force  (BSF)  for  booking  Reserved  Rail  e-tickets  on  17-Feb2022.
5. Retiring Room booking facility in IRCTC Rail Connect Mobile App: This feature enables the passenger with booking of Retiring Rooms for  the  tickets  booked  through  App,  at  the  stations  wherever available (27-Apr-21).
6. Infant  Divyaang  Concession  Booking  with  Escort  in  IRCTC  Rail Connect Mobile App and Website: Divyang Concession booking for the  Infants  can  now  be  done  through  IRCTC  Rail  Connect  Mobile App (Android, 22-Sep-2021 ) and Website www.irctc.co.in (25-Aug2021).

7. E-ticket booking through AskDisha Chatbot (31-Mar-2022): For the first  time,  railway  e-tickets  can  be  purchased  in  a  convenient conversational manner using voice and chat, even without the need for an IRCTC password. The system requires no passwords but will work based on the One Time Password (OTP) sent to the  mobile number. AskDisha (Digital Interaction to Seek Help Anytime) is an Artificial  Intelligence  and  Machine  learning  based  Chatbot,  that answers  queries  pertaining  to  various  services  offered  by  IRCTC through which customer can now book reserved rail e-tickets also.

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