Passengers travelling in Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto trains can pay less for a ticket if they don’t choose the catering service on board as a part of trial run by the Indian Railways.
The new system, which will be implemented from August 1, has been devised following complaints about the quality of food being provided on trains.
The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) currently runs the pantry on all trains, and catering is mandatory on most luxury trains.
The trial scheme will be implemented in Rajdhani, Duronto and other similar trains, except the Gatiman Express, where catering charges are part of the ticket fare.
“The catering charges will be included in the ticket fare, in case passengers opt for catering services and excluded in case of passengers who do not require the service,” reads the notification issued by the ministry. “There will be a reduction in the fare on account of when one does not avail the catering facility,” the notification further read.
Passenger, however, will not be allowed to change their option at any point in time, once they opt for the service at the time of booking.
Citing reports on bad quality of food being served on trains and after the recent comptroller and auditor general (CAG) report that has termed food served on train as ‘unfit for human consumption,’ the ministry has asked the IRCTC to develop a list of options that the passengers can click at the time of booking or during the journey to inform the reason for not taking a meal.
Railways is starting the scheme on trail-basis for a period of 180 days, which will be reviewed after three months.
