The government waived service charges after demonetisation in November last year to encourage digital modes of booking.
- The facility had been extended to June 30 and then September 30.
- Now the passengers can avail service charge exemption on tickets booked online till March 2018
- Service charges on booking train tickets online through IRCTC ranges from Rs 20 to 40 per ticket.
- Almost 33 per cent of the IRCTC revenue comes from the service charge collected on online bookings.
- As per the revenue collection of the last financial year, about Rs 540 crore of IRCTC’s revenue of over Rs 1,500 crore came from ticket bookings.
About IRCTC
- Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) is a subsidiary of the Indian Railways.
- It handles the catering, tourism and online ticketing operations of the Indian railways.
- It pioneered internet-based rail ticket booking through its website
- It has also launched a loyalty program called Shubh Yatra for frequent travellers.
- Through this program, passengers can avail of discounts on all tickets booked round the year by paying an upfront annual fee.
