Tag: IRCTC

Election Commission notice to Indian Railways on use of cups with chowkidar slogan

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Election Commission (EC) is learnt to have issued a fresh show cause to the Indian Railways, this time on the use of paper tea cups with “main bhi chowkidar” slogan.

As the image tweeted by a passenger went viral, railways said they have withdrawn the cup and penalised the contractor.

EC sources said railways have been asked to explain the prima facie violation of the model code of conduct by Saturday evening. It has also been asked to explain the person responsible for it.

The EC is learnt to have invoked the ‘party in power’ clause of the poll code in the case as it could be averred that party in power’ is using government transporter for election publicity.

“Reports that tea has been served in cups labelled as ‘main bhi chowkidar’ have been investigated. This was without any prior approval of IRCTC. An explanation has been sought from Supervisor/Pantry Incharges over lack of devotion to duty. One lakh fine has been imposed on the service provider. Show cause notice has also been served to the service provider for this misconduct,” said IRCTC in a statement on Friday.

This particular cup was found on board 12040 Kathgodam Shatabdi. Tea was served twice in these cups. This issue comes days after railways was found in violation of the MCC when it was found to be issuing tickets with PM Narendra Modi’s pictures. Later, railways said that it was an “unintentional and inadvertent mistake”.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

IRCTC launches payment aggregator, IRCTC iPay

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched its own payment aggregator system, IRCTC iPay, a step which will help promote the government’s Digital India initiative. A statement from the railways’ catering and ticketing arm said the exclusive digital payment gateway will provide an improved online digital payment convenience and ease of doing business to passengers availing online travel-related services through the IRCTC website.

“With the launch of IRCTC iPay, the passengers will not need any third-party platforms as the IRCTC iPay provides payment options like credit card, debit card, UPI ? Unified Payment Interface, International Card. The option of IRCTC prepaid card cum wallet, auto debit shall also be available shortly,” the statement said.

Under this new arrangement, IRCTC will have full control of the payment system because of its direct relationship with acquiring banks, card networks and other partners.

“This will help reduce the gap between IRCTC and banks which will eventually lead to substantial reduction in payment failures. Moreover, in case an online transaction is unsuccessful or some other error occurs, IRCTC can directly get in touch with the bank instead of relying on an intermediate source which usually delays the process,” the statement said.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Now, IRCTC will provide much friendlier experience with seat booking, charts

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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To make train journey hassle-free for passengers, the Indian Railways has started displaying reserved charts online to allow people to check the status of their seats.

The user-friendly interface gives a graphical representation of the train coaches showing berth-wise allotment on the website.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday that the reservation charts will facilitate the prospective passengers in getting the information of the vacant berths available in the train after the preparation of the chart.

He further added, “Complete information of vacant berths from train source as well as intermediate locations will be available to the user. The prospective customer can use the information for onboard booking of vacant berths by TTE as per business rules. This feature is available on the web as well as mobile version.”

The website will provide a seating layout with different colours to show if the seats are booked, vacant and partially booked, just like any airlines website.

If the second chart is also prepared, then the option to view the details of the vacant berth available at the time of the second chart will also be displayed. The second chart is prepared about 30 minutes prior to the departure of the train to accommodate the information of current reservations and cancellations done after the first chart.

In the next 20 days, the website will be available for Shatabdi and Rajdhani passengers.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Now, read magazines, newspapers at discount while travelling on trains as railways inks new pact

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Commuters travelling on trains will now be able to read magazines and newspapers from across the world at a discount on IRCTC’s ticket booking website as railways has tied up with Magzter, a leading digital newsstand, a statement said on Tuesday.

Under the partnership, commuters can get unlimited access to more than 5,000 best-selling magazines and select newspapers on their phones and tablets at an exclusive offer, it added.

“These magazines spread across more than 40 categories including automotive, business, comics, education, entertainment, fashion, fitness, lifestyle, news, politics, science, technology and travel, thereby engaging everyone in the family from 6 to 60+ years of age,” the statement said.

This facility has now become available on irctc.co.in, it said.

IRCTC users will be given exclusive advantage of availing this facility at a heavily discounted price along with customised affordable packages and exclusive seven days free trial package, it said.

IRCTC users can choose their packs from various durations – from one day at Rs 20 to a year at Rs 499, and indulge in unlimited reading, the statement said.

Under the facility, the readers can enjoy unlimited access to content from all the major countries including India, the US, the UK, Singapore, Australia, Canada and South Africa on the go.

“More importantly, once the magazines are downloaded on the device they can be accessed even without an internet connection which will come in handy when the users are travelling,” it said.

Magzter offers magazines in regional languages including Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati and Urdu, apart from leading Indian English magazines.

Apart from magazines, IRCTC users also get access to premium articles curated from best-selling magazines and the latest news from hundreds of trustworthy sources on the Magzter app, the statement said.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Transferred on basis of false, unsubstantiated and frivolous allegations, says Alok Verma

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Alok Verma, who has been removed from the post of CBI director unceremoniously by a high-powered selection committee, has claimed that he was transferred on the basis of “false, unsubstantiated and frivolous allegations” made by only one person who was inimical to him.

The high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi removed Verma from the post on Thursday on charges of corruption and dereliction of duty.

Breaking his silence over the issue, Verma, in a statement to PTI late on Thursday night, said the CBI being a prime investigating agency dealing in corruption in high public places is an institution whose independence should be preserved and protected.

“It must function without external influences. I have tried to uphold the integrity of the institution while attempts were being made to destroy it. The same can be seen from the orders of the central government and the CVC dated October 23, 2018, which were without jurisdiction and were set aside,” he said.

Verma termed it “sad” that he was transferred to another post pursuant to the orders of the committee on the basis of “false, unsubstantiated and frivolous allegations made by only one person, who was inimical to him”.

The 1979-batch IPS officer has been posted as the Director General Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards, under the Union home ministry. The charge of the CBI has been given to additional director M Nageshwar Rao, said a government order issued on Thursday evening.

Headed by the prime minister, the high-powered committee comprised leader of Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Justice A K Sikri, appointed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi as his nominee.

Verma said the committee was assigned the task of deciding his future course of action as the director of the CBI.

“I have stood up for the integrity of the institution, and if asked will do it again in order to uphold the rule of law,” he said.

Verma had resumed duty as CBI director on Wednesday, a day after the apex court paved his return with some riders and asked the three-member panel that selects the CBI chief to decide on his continuance in a week in the light of charges against him in the report of the Central Vigilance Commission(CVC).

Verma’s two-year tenure as director of Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) was due to end on January 31.

According to officials, there were eight charges against Verma in the CVC report presented before the panel which included alleged attempts to induct tainted officers, compromising probe in the case related to controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi, IRCTC scam among others.

Special Director Rakesh Asthana, with whom Verma had a public feud, had given a complaint against him to the Cabinet Secretary in August which was referred to the CVC.

The CVC report spoke about the controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi’s case and claimed that the CBI team looking into it wanted to make Hyderabad-based businessman Sathish Babu Sana an accused but Verma never gave clearance, officials said. The probe in this case was led by Asthana.

Asthana was later booked by the CBI on the basis of a magisterial statement recorded by Sana who had claimed that two businessman brothers had sought bribe of Rs 5 crore from him to get relief to him in a case against him using their contacts with the special director.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

CAG report on impact of demonetisation may be tabled in budget session of parliament

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Two years after the launch of demonetisation, the national auditor is likely to table a report that analyses the impact of the move in the budget session of parliament, government officials privy to the development told CNBC-TV18.

On May 17, 2017, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) had called a meeting “to discuss audit issues arising from the demonetisation exercise” and asked various offices of government and CAG to submit their views by August 10, 2018.

For the report, the auditor has sought the impact on expenditure made by the government to provide relief during demonetisation; GDP estimation and contraction/expansion of union government spending; suspicious banking transactions post demonetisation; voluntary income disclosure scheme (VDIS) 2016 and Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme (PMGKDS) 2016, said the officials. They asked not to be named.

Further, CAG has asked for additional expenses incurred by commercial banks with regard to expenses incurred on return of old currency, distribution of new currency, overtime payments to staff, recalibration of ATMs, etc.

In November 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the shock move to ban high-value notes to flush out money hidden from tax authorities. The government withdrew 500 and 1,000 rupee notes.

Opinion is divided over the success of the move aimed to bring thousands of crores worth of cash in unaccounted wealth into the mainstream economy. The government maintains that demonetisation was a success while opposition Congress party has said it was a failure.

With regard to efficiency of the printing exercise, the CAG sought details of additional expenditure on account of cost of printing new currency notes by Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL), Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran (BRBNMPL) and Bank Note Paper Mill India Private Limited (BNPM).

In the insurance sector, the auditor has asked for the impact of incentives provided for digital transactions discounts on premium and grace periods, post demonetisation and for the petroleum companies, “It appears that an amount of Rs 351 crore may have been incurred or borne by public sector oil marketing companies on account of discounts extended to customers.”

Coming to infrastructure, “Rs 936 crore worked out on account of compensation due to National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) concessionaires”, according to CAG.

The national auditor has sought details of implementation of various schemes launched by National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI), on account of incentivising digital transactions; the impact on IRCTC related to the waiver of service charges and on the indirect tax collections of the various states and union territories.

The CAG is currently understood to be compiling comments on these aspects collected by its various offices, said the officials familiar with the matter.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Indian Railways Train Ticket Booking: Here’s how to get discounts using Paytm, PhonePe and MobiKwik

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Various digital payment platforms such as MobiKwik, PhonePe and Paytm are offering huge discounts and cashback offers when used for booking Indian Railways tickets, reported Financial Express.

MobiKwik is giving 10 percent discount on booking train tickets by making payments through their application, the report said, adding that the users will be able to use their SuperCash balance in order to get up to 10 percent instant discount on their rail e-ticket booking amount.

The offer is available on both the new IRCTC website and the IRCTC Rail Connect App.

Paytm is giving a Rs 100 cash back to users on booking through its platform, while Flipkart’s PhonePe is also offering the same cashback of Rs 100, said the report.

Here are the steps to avail these offers on the IRCTC website.

• Login with the username and password to the IRCTC E-ticketing website.
• Fill the travel details
• Make the payment through MobiKwik, Paytm, PhonePe after entering CAPTCHA.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Here’s what you should know about the new IRCTC website

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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IRCTC’s old website disappeared on Thursday as it was replaced with the new e-ticketing site, reported Financial Express. The users trying to open the old website will now be automatically directed to the newer one.

In one of the crucial features, the new website ‘irctc.co.in/nget/train-search’ will now inform you about the probability of your wait-listed ticket getting confirmed, the paper reported on Thursday.

Additionally, the new site does not require the user to login, making it easier for the users to check various matters including train fare, availability of trains and modification of travel details among others, said the report.

According to the report, the beta version was launched last month and the officials were satisfied with its performance.

“We have been working on the IRCTC website for the last couple of months taking it through rigorous checks … the aim was to make the website smooth and user-friendly and give users as many options and conveniences as possible … we want that users should be able to glide through the exercise of checking train availability and ticket booking … the last I checked as many as 70% of the users on the new IRCTC e-ticketing website have given it a thumbs up, which is a very good number,”  Mohd. Jamshed, member traffic, railway board was quoted as saying in the report.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Railways, IT ministry ink pact to allow bookings via 2.9 lakh common service centres

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Ministry of Railways and IT Ministry today signed an agreement to allow ticket bookings through 2.9 lakh common service centres (CSCs) in the country in next 8-9 months.

Now all 2.9 lakh CSCs will be connected through technology to facilitate railways ticket booking. At present, around 40,000 CSCs are connected… In the next 8-9 months all CSCs should be able to do ticket booking,” Railways Minister Piyush Goyal said after signing of the pact.

The pact was signed between IRCTC and CSC India, which manages common service centres across the country for providing government services in rural areas.

CSC will be able to book both reserved and unreserved tickets.

Goyal said that he will work on allowing all 2.9 lakh CSC to work as banking correspondents and also explore the opportunity to set up extended bank counters at CSCs to provide banking and financial services in rural areas.

He asked Law and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to provide “speed, skill and scale” to his proposal of financial services through CSCs.

“CSCs can also be made a medium to grant mudra loans, but you will have to be vigilant and make commitment for honesty,” Goyal said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

IRCTC says it needs three more years to achieve 2.82 lakh service centres

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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It will take the IRCTC three more years to provide e-ticketing services to citizens through 2.82 lakh retail service providers, as it has registered only 38,500 RSPs till date, sources in the railways’ e-ticketing arm said today.

The sources said that the 2.82 lakh figure was difficult to achieve with around 200-300 retail service providers (RSP) registering daily with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).

“With just around 200-300 registering daily, as of now we have 38,500 RSPs for the IRCTC services. It has been conveyed to the IT Ministry. We are taking this on a war footing,” the source said.

In order to enable more merchants to accept digital payment, especially in the rural areas of the country, the government launched the common service centres (CSC).

The CSCs, which was recently renamed as ‘Digital Seva Kendras’, are supposed to be in the rural areas of the country and help citizens in those areas with the delivery of various electronic services like online ticket booking, Aadhaar enrolment, printing and generation of certifications, among others.

The government claims that there are 2.92 such centres operational in the country, with the IRCTC meant to deliver e-ticketing services via retail service providers (RSPs) through 2.8 lakh such centres.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow