Tag: irctc

IRCTC Unveils NFT Tickets for Lucknow-Delhi Tejas Trains as Holi-Themed Digital Souvenirs

The digital assets industry in India marked a landmark day on March 13 after the NFT sector got a straightforward acknowledgement from the Indian railways. In a bid to celebrate the spirit of Holi, the IRCTC has unveiled colourful NFT tickets for two Tejas trains running between the cities of Delhi and Lucknow. The IRCTC or the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation is a central public sector enterprise governed by the Ministry of Railways in the country.

IRCTC unveiled the first look of these NFTs through its very active X handle. From the looks of it, these NFTs will show sketches of the historic landmarks of Delhi and Lucknow against colourfully shaded backdrops. Starting March 20, ticket buyers of Tejas trains numbered 82501 and 82502 will be eligible to get access to these NFTs. This initiative will conclude on April 2.

The NFTs also come with some benefits the IRCTC explained in its X post. It said, “These tickets are not merely digital souvenirs. They symbolise our dedication to enriching your journey experiences, allowing you to personalise your travel memories with your own photographs and enjoy exclusive offers from handpicked brands,”.

For now, the IRCTC has not officially confirmed if all ticket buyers will get these NFT tickets as a complimentary part of their purchases, or if they’d have to pay extra to avail these digital collectibles. NFTs are digital collectibles that are built on blockchain networks.

The Indian Railways has already been exploring the blockchain tech for enough time now that it is circulating NFTs as digital memorabilia. In March last year, for instance, the National Academy of Indian Railways launched a workshop to spread awareness around the benefits of blockchain in railway industries in partnership with Polygon.

Earlier this year, IRCTC was offering tickets to Ayodhya in the form of NFTs.

“More than just a ticket to Ayodhya Dham- a souvenir of the divine Shree Ramotsav. Treasure the pious memories of Lord Shree Rama’s arrival forever, with Blockchain NFT,” IRCTC had said on a specially dedicated website at the time.

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Microsoft Copilot for Security, a Cybersecurity Focused AI Chatbot, Will Launch on April 1



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Indian Railways Working on ‘Super App’ With Features Offered by Multiple Apps: Report

The Indian Railways is reportedly developing an app that will perform several functions, allowing users to access a single app for a variety of services offered by the railways, from booking tickets to checking their PNR status and tracking the progress of a train. As per a report, the new, unified app will combine the features supported on a range of mobile apps — such as IRCTC Rail Connect — offered by the railways, while allowing the platform to support monetisation in order to increase revenue.

The Economic Times reports that the Indian Railways is developing a “super app” that is designed to combine services offered by apps like UTS (Unreserved Ticketing System), Rail Madad, and the National Train Enquiry System. In order to develop the app and operate it for a three-year period, the railways will have to spend Rs. 90 crore, according to the report.

The new super app will be developed by the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), an autonomous body under the Ministry of Railways. “This will improve user experience by reducing the number of downloads needed for a complete bouquet of railway services…”The Indian Railways apps need an overhaul after taking user feedback into account,” a senior government official told the publication.

In addition to offering the functionality of the three apps mentioned above, the super app could also offer services available via other IRCTC apps such as flight ticket booking, in-train food delivery, and ticket purchase management, according to the report.

While all of the apps offered by the Indian Railways have been downloaded millions of times, a super app that offers the services of several apps could allow users to quickly access information and perform a variety of tasks without downloading several apps. The availability of a single app should also make the railways’ digital services more accessible to a wider range of users, by eliminating the need to browse for multiple apps.

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Moto G34 5G Tipped to Launch in India on January 9



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Indian Railways Introduce Real-Time Information System to Track Train Movement Timing

Indian Railways is installing a Real-Time Train Information System (RTIS), developed in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), on locomotives “for automatic acquisition of train movement timing at the stations, including that of arrival and departure or run-through”, the Ministry of Railways said in a statement on Friday.

“Real Time Train Information System (RTIS), developed in collaboration with ISRO, is being installed on the locomotives for automatic acquisition of train movement timing at the stations, including that of arrival & departure or run-through. They get automatically plotted on the control chart of those trains in the Control Office Application (COA) system,” the ministry said.

The Ministry said that RTIS will give mid-section updates with a periodicity of 30 seconds.

“The Train Control can now track the location and speed of RTIS enabled locomotives /train more closely, without any manual intervention,” it said.

RTIS devices have been installed for 2,700 locomotives in 21 electric loco sheds.

As part of Phase-II roll out, 6,000 more locomotives across 50 loco sheds shall be covered by utilising ISRO’s Satcom hub.

“Currently, GPS feed from around 6,500 Locomotives (RTIS and REMMLOT) is being directly fed into the Control Office Application (COA). This has enabled automatic charting of trains and real time information flow to passengers through COA and NTES integration,” the ministry added.

Meanwhile, the newly launched Chatbot of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited (IRCTC) is getting remarkable response from the train passengers during the beta launch as over 1 billion people have used it, a senior IRCTC official said.

While talking to ANI, the official said that the new conversational and convenient feature to book railway tickets enables customers to interact with the system via voice, chat and click-based system. Additionally, the system requires no passwords and works based on the One Time Password (OTP).

The official also told that the technology is powered by CoRover, a conversational AI Platform which is being used by more than 1 billion users.

“In our constant pursuit to enhance the user experience, leveraging new age technologies, we are today taking a giant leap. Now, passengers can book their train ticket in a conversational manner, leveraging our AI Virtual Assistant, AskDISHA 2.0, powered by CoRover, the Conversational AI platform, used by more than 1 billion users.”

The improved Virtual Assistant, AskDISHA 2.0 has many features like booking tickets, checking PNR status, cancelling tickets, changing boarding station, checking refund status and answering queries like Tatkal timings.

The official further informed that this is a landmark step towards enhancing the passenger experience.

“First time, the users can book ticket without knowing their IRCTC password, it will be possible just with an OTP. AskDISHA 2.0 has also proven to be a very effective instrument and the addition of voice booking and will make it even easier for travellers to plan their trips,” the official added.

The senior official also estimated that at least 25 per cent of clients will be switching to this option in the future.

The new avatar of IRCTC’s Chatbot AskDISHA 2.0, aims to help users get authentic, correct and instant answers to their queries. It will not just save time and enhance the user experience, but will also help them in doing end-to-end real time transactions, the official said.

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IRCTC Now Allows Passengers to Order Food via Chatbot on WhatsApp: All Details

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation’s (IRCTC) food delivery service Zoop has partnered with Reliance-owned Haptik to provide online food delivery services on trains, via WhatsApp. With the latest collaboration, passengers can order food via the chatbot on the instant messaging app without downloading any additional app and get it delivered to their seats while travelling. Passengers have to enter their PNR number to place the order and the service offers real-time tracking.

As per a video shared by Haptik on YouTube, IRCTC’s Zoop is associating with Haptik to offer a WhatsApp-based food delivery service on trains. The platforms now allow passengers to book food of their choice from partner restaurants through WhatsApp while travelling on a train.

Passengers can connect to a WhatsApp chatbot named ‘Ziva’ through number +91 7042062070 and will then have to enter their PNR number to place food orders. The chatbot will verify the travel details and allow passengers to select the station where they want the food to be delivered. There are options to pay online and in cash.

The chatbot will also help passengers to track the order in real-time and leave feedback. Once they reach the selected station, food will be delivered to the passengers in their respective seats.

As per a report by PTI, the new service is currently available at more than 100 A1, A, and B Category railway stations including Vijayawada, Vadodra, Warangal, Upadhyaya, Kanpur, Tundla Junction, and Balharshah Junction.

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Twitter, IRCTC Summoned by Shashi Tharoor-Led Parliamentary Panel Over Data Security

Twitter and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has been asked to appear before the Congress MP Shashi Tharoor-led Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology on Friday. The microblogging site and railway ticketing app have been summoned to discuss concerns over “citizens’ data security and privacy”. The parliamentary meeting comes days after the centre withdrew Personal Data Protection (PDP) Bill, 2019. It will now be replaced it with a new bill.

As informed to PTI by sources, the Tharoor-led parliamentary panel will question Twitter on its management and composition. The social media platform can also be questioned about whether it has extended favours to a particular political party.

Meanwhile, the IRCTC, with more than 10 crore users, has hired a consultant to monetise passenger data. The panel may seek answers for the reason to hire a consultant. IRCTC can also be questioned about the tender floated to hire for the consultant’s job, the sources said.

According to the sources, the Tharoor-led panel has been holding meetings with various stakeholders regarding data security and privacy. These include tech companies, social media firms, ministries, and other regulators. The panel is likely to finalise its report before August 30.

Earlier this month, the union government led by Information and Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced to withdraw the Personal Data Protection (PDP) Bill, 2019. This legislation will be now replaced with a “comprehensive bill” for “contemporary digital privacy laws”.

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Indian Railways Said to Consider Withdrawing Tender for Consultant to Monetise Customer Data

The Indian Railways has floated a tender to hire a consultant to monetise its passenger and freight customer data with the aim to generate revenue up to Rs 1,000 crore, but sources told PTI it may be withdrawn amid concerns over privacy issues. While many on social media, including advocacy groups have raised concerns over violation of data privacy issues, government sources have clarified that the consultant would advise the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) on steps to improve its existing business and plan strategies to monetise future opportunities.

While the Indian Railways has not officially commented on the tender, highly placed sources told PTI it will be withdrawn “considering the fact that the Data Protection Bill has not been finalised”.

According to the tender document, the data to be studied will include information captured by the transporter’s various public facing applications such as “name, age, mobile number, gender, address, e-mail ID, class of journey, payment mode, login or password” and other details.

The IRCTC has more than 10 crore users, of which 7.5 crore are active users.

The document also stated that the consultant, once finalised, will be provided the details of applications and the data collected thereon for conducting the study for ‘Monetization of Digital Data of Indian Railways’.

The consultant shall study the data of passenger, freight and parcel businesses of the Indian Railways such as PRS, NGeT, NTES, UTS, Rail Madad, FOIS, TMS, e-CRM, and PMS, as well as vendor-related data from applications like IREPS, VMS and IPAS.

The document titled ‘The Scope of Work for Project A: For study of Monetization of Digital Data of Indian Railways(IR)’ said the consultant would also be provided access to the digital data systems which generate behavioural data such as flow of passengers, class of journey, frequency of journey, travel time, booking time, age group and gender, payment mode, number of destinations and booking modes.

The objective of the exercise, it said, is for the IRCTC to leverage its data assets and market position to drive strong growth in revenues. This can be achieved by improving customer experience, expanding the portfolio of products being offered to the customers and/or developing new business lines and partnerships, the document stated.

“IRCTC envisages a revenue generation potential of Rs 1,000 crore through Monetization of its Digital Assets. IRCTC wishes to engage a consulting firm to help in identification, design, and development and roll-out of data monetization opportunities,” it said.

While the Railways is yet to officially respond, sources close to the development said the IRCTC does not “sell its data and neither has any intention to do so”. They said the consultant is being hired to advise the IRCTC on steps to improve its existing business and plan out strategies to monetise future businesses. It will also focus on how the IRCTC could adopt new business opportunities.

“IRCTC will also develop new businesses on its own platform and will need assistance from market leaders. IRCTC does not store any financial data of its customers at its end, as at the time of online payment for its various services, control is passed on to the respective payment gateway or bank for the payment,” the sources said.

The document also said that the consultant will study various Acts or laws, including the IT Act, 2000 and its amendments, user data privacy laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation and the current ‘Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018’, and accordingly, propose the business models for monetisation of digital assets.

The consultant would also prepare a roadmap for data monetisation of the digital data collected at various customer-facing and vendor-related applications which include zonal railways, divisions, and other units like CRIS, and PSUs like IRCTC and Railtel.

Tasks listed for the appointed consultant include segregation of monetisable data sets, identification of market potential internationally, and preparation of a roadmap for data monetisation of the digital data.

Internet Freedom Foundation, a Delhi-based non-governmental organisation advocating digital rights and liberties, has raised concerns over the tender and outlined its pitfalls in a series of tweets.

“Hey train travellers, your data will soon be monetised by the govt. and that too, in the absence of a data protection legislation! …A profit maximisation goal will result in greater incentives for data collection, violating principles of data minimisation & purpose limitation. Past experiences from the misuse of Vahan database amplify fears of mass surveillance & security risks,” it said.

“IRCTC, a government-controlled monopoly, must not prioritise perverse commercial interests over the rights and interests of citizens. And given the recent withdrawal of the Data Protection Bill, 2021, such monetisation becomes even more concerning,” the NGO added.

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