IRCTC Railway train ticket booking gets costlier. Know the charges
Premium- IRCTC has decided to restore service charges on online train ticket booking from September
- Payment through UPI or BHIM applications will attract less service charges on IRCTC
PremiumOnline train ticket booking for your rail journey gets costlier as IRCTC has decided to restore convenience fee charges on e-tickets. Starting from September 1, Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) is levying a service charge of ₹15 per ticket for non-AC classes. For tickets in AC classes, including the first class, the convenience fee is ₹30, according to IRCTC. Goods and Services Tax (GST) will be applicable separately on online tickets.
However, payment through UPI or BHIM applications will attract less service charges, according to the IRCTC release. The convenience fee will be ₹10 per ticket for non-AC classes. For AC classes, the service charge will be ₹20 per ticket if you book thorough any UPI or BHIM apps.
Earlier, Indian Railways used to levy a service charge of ₹20 on every non-AC e-ticket and ₹40 for every AC ticket. The convenience fee on online tickets bought through IRCTC was waived three years ago to promote digital payments in the country.
IRCTC's revenue took a hit after services charges were reduced. IRCTC witnessed a 26% drop in online ticketing revenue in financial year 2016-17.
In August, the Railway board gave its approval to the IRCTC to restore the convenience charges. In a letter dated 30 August, the Railway board said the IRCTC had made a "detailed case" for the restoration of service charges and the matter had been examined by the "competent authority". It further said the finance ministry had contended that the service charges waiver was a temporary one and the railway ministry could restart it.
