The worst set of experiences I had ever had with the railways is when booking a ticket.
Imagine the long queues and the bored staff that treated people with indifference as if they were recording the details of criminals on their age-old computers. Those dirty little forms and the silent prayers for availability of berths on the desired dates. Those frantic search for change and the reversion to the end of the queue to try in another train. Those long hours of wait interrupted by ’’Links Down’’signs...yes I am referring to the age of computerization and not the one before.
About an year ago, I stumbled upon a magic lantern called IRCTC. This is the Catering and Tourist Division of the Railways. They also provide for online booking of railway tickets through https://irctc.co.in. Thanks to it, I can book my ticket in 10 minutes sitting at my workstation or home.
The last time I reviewed a website, I was thrashed soundly by the discerning ‘janata’ for pitching in for a piece of junk. At the risk of being thrashed again, I venture out to give a clean chit and thumbs up to this facility of the Railways.
The reason:
I could book tickets from anywhere to anywhere sitting at my workstation at work.
I could check for of trains from A to B on a particular day, of time and distance for journey, of availability of berths on a given class and of alternatives, before booking my tickets…all in a jiffy.
I could get a lot of allied info…train frequencies, time tables, routes, fares etc.
I could follow up my booking using my PNR number anytime to track my Wait-listed or RAC ticket.
I could even follow up the courier delivery and contact the local courier office, in case the ticket was late on arrival or I was unavailable at the designated address.
If my payment failed, I could book again.
I get regular updates on the status of my booking on my mail ID.
I can maintain my own record of bookings.
I have booked 19 tickets on this facility. On the first 3 occasions, I received my tickets in three days of booking. The rest, I received the very next day of booking. That is fast service, considering that the tickets came from New Delhi vide courier. The courier service is offered to about 85 cities and towns across the country. Even for a journey on a short notice when you do not have the minimum two days of time for delivery, you get to check the berth availability since the site is connected to the national booking network.
The gateways for payment (It accepts both cash card and credit card) are secure and generally fast, though occasionally they take an eternity. I heard they have opted for LINUX. Which must be good news. (Frankly, really know the difference between Linux and Windows save that Linux is open source).
The are generally hassle-free. On one occasion, I had made a wrong entry of details. Unknowingly, I had opted for collection of the ticket from the New Delhi office instead of courier delivery. I called up the folks in Delhi to explain the error on my part. To my surprise, it was the General Manager who answered the call, on a Sunday, patiently explaining me what is to be done. He even offered to talk to the Bangalore City booking office to help me out. WOW! That is some service considering that this is a PSU.
The flat rate of Rupees 40 per ticket for booking and delivery is OK considering the saving in time, effort and money I make on going to the nearest booking office and queuing up. Not to mention, the comfort and the piece of mind I get. The 40 bucks is for the delivery of the piece of paper on which the ticket is printed. I.e. if 4 people are booked on one ticket, the cost is still 40 bucks.
However there is one sore point about the whole thing.
You still have to trudge along to the booking office to cancel the ticket…which means, the queues, the bored staff, the time, the links down….