ICRTC plans to introduce non-internet based mobile phones ticketing from 1 July

In a bid to ease the ticketing process further, Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) plans to launch a pilot project for ticketing through non-internet based mobile phones from 1 July.

The move would provide people using non-internet based mobile phones access to railway ticketing services through SMS or Interactive Voice Response (IVR) or Unstructured Supplementary Services Data (USSD) systems.

The scheme, aimed at improving access to ticketing, would be user-friendly, secure and eco-friendly to boot, as it would do away with printouts.

The objective is to tap the potential of the mobile phone market as also to provide the consumer with anywhere, anytime and hassle-free booking option, according to an official.

The system would work with a dedicated number to  which a text message could be sent for booking, payment, cancellation with no need for internet at any stage.

Consumers would have to register their mobile number with IRCTC as also one's bank (one time password) for payment authorisation.

The passenger would need to type the train number, destination, journey date, class and passenger details like name, age and gender on the SMS box.

The sender would receive a transaction ID and then go on to make payment by sending another text message typing PAY followed by the transaction ID and the bank password.

On successful ticket booking, the user would receive a message from IRCTC which would suffice as valid authority to travel, along with photo ID card in original.

Tickets can also be cancelled with the cancellation option available.