BackIRCTC Partners With India Assist—It will be a game changer for travel industry
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) puts India Assist – one of the showcase startups for GoI, into an authoritative position to cater to IRCTC passengers looking for emergency travel assistance.
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Technology-driven travel assistance platform India Assist — entered into a pact with the IRCTC to provide on-ground emergency assistance to over 2 million customers who opt for IRCTC travel packages for their vacations. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) puts India Assist – one of the showcase startups for GoI, into an authoritative position to cater to IRCTC passengers looking for emergency travel assistance.
India Assist, led by its founder & MD, pointed out that the pact will be a massive relief for travellers who fall into unwanted situations and have no support available. Elaborating about India Assist, he said that on the eve of World Tourism Day, they relaunched the operations across 100+ cities only a few months ago. The travel-tech startup offers various assistance services ranging from medical emergency support, emergency transit assistance, on-ground assistance, and help in case of theft/loss, amongst others. The pact with the IRCTC comes when the industry dynamics shift towards a more connected ecosystem.
India Assist has made waves across the travel arena for being the only global player to provide tech-enabled emergency travel assistance via the proprietary India Assist app. It aims to simplify travel assistance across verticals, from emergency to on-ground, alongside support in case of untimely service disruptions. The celebrated startup began with much promise, backed by Seed FDIs from Silicon Valley but had to cope with fast-paced changes to the travel ecosystem. The coronavirus pandemic had once badly daunted the growth of the travel industry and the startups operating in that space. India Assist received a positive reception from tourists across the globe as it provided free more than 3000 assistance to foreign tourists who were left stranded owing to the global and nationwide lockdowns while dealing with the daunting dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Founder Harish Khatri emphasized the need for on-ground assistance to the vast number of tourists relying on IRCTC packages for their tour plans. He said the pact could be a game changer for tourists and travellers. "Since inception, our focus has been on ensuring hassle-free and seamless travel for people of all ages. The motive is to provide round-the-clock, on-ground assistance to travelers during unavoidable circumstances, calamities, and unforeseen incidents. Our on-ground personnel is a call or click away, and India Assist has invested a lot in technology-first to overcome the barriers of distance & geography. With almost two million active IRCTC users and our powerful presence across 100+ cities — we feel that we can change the way people perceive travel and assistance in the first place.", he added.
India Assist had recently redesigned its services to cater to the B2B market for travel which still needs more stability when it comes to traditional B2B setup. "Various stakeholders of the travel ecosystem - travel agents, airlines, hotels or aggregators — operate individually, and that is why in case of an unfortunate incident like theft/baggage loss, safety or security hazards — it is ultimately the traveller who suffers. We are trying to bridge these verticals and bring service providers together with our assistance – a win-win for the travel industry. Travel agents are another important part of the travel ecosystem, as they are the ones who recommend flights, hotels, trains, on-ground, and last-mile transportation to passengers. With our B2B franchise-based model, agents can extend India Assist services to their customers as complimentary or at an additional cost/markup, whatever works well with them.", Harish said. India Assist's B2B franchise-based model packs a unique value proposition for the travel agents as they would double down as sellers and service providers of India Assist services.
A solution like India Assist can be a boon for solo travellers and people travelling with families by helping them with emergency assistance during medical or on-ground issues. For instance, their on-ground teams in over 100 cities help people file a First Information Report (FIR) at the nearest police station during cases involving theft/loss of baggage. It also connects travellers to nearby hospitals during a medical emergency, which is an integral value addition to the existing railway infrastructure. With IRCTC's unparalleled emphasis on providing quality services to travellers and India Assist's unwavering focus on reaching every nook and corner with its robust on-ground assistance & tech mechanism, the pact promises a holistic solution to the need of the tourists or travellers looking for a hassle-free travel experience.
Website: https://www.indiaassist.com//
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