According to a press release given by the Minister of State for Railways, Shri Rajen Gohain in Lok Sabha on 2nd August 2017, new schemes will be introduced and older ones will be modified to promote the use of digital modes of transaction.
Below-mentioned schemes have been introduced for promoting digital transactions by Indian Railways –
1. The facility of booking and renewing unreserved ticket including journey, season and platform tickets through cell phones has been introduced in all suburban sections of Central, Western, Southern, Eastern, South Central, Southeastern and Delhi-Palwal and Delhi-Ghaziabad non-suburban sections of Northern Railways. Additional digital payment options have also been introduced to encourage digital payments for the purchase of unreserved tickets.
2. Point of Sale (POS) machines are being installed at various locations including Passenger Reservation System (PRS) locations, Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) locations, and Parcel/Goods locations under an agreement with State Bank of India. Also, the service charge applicable on transactions against credit/debit cards for purchasing journey tickets at UTS/ PRS counters has been withdrawn.
3. 0.5% discount is given on purchase of season tickets through digital means with effect from 01.01.2017 up to 30.09.2017.
4. Free accidental insurance covers up to INR 10 lakh for confirmed/RAC passengers has been extended if the tickets are booked online from 10.12.2016 to 30.09.2017.
5. Provisions have been made in new Catering Policy 2017 for installation of the facility for cashless transactions via POS/ Swipe machine, etc. in all the mobile and static units.
