The Hindu
The new SMS facility launched by the Railways will reduce the crowding
near the notice board of pasted chart locations on platforms. File
photo:Sushil Kumar Verma
Now you will no longer have to dial 139 or visit the
rail website to check the status of your
waitlisted ticket as the
railways will now send booking status messages to passengers on mobile
phones, if the tickets get confirmed before the journey.
“For the last 10 days the trial was going on and today we formally
launched the SMS alert service for all passengers whose waitlisted
tickets get confirmed,” Minister of State for Railways Adhir Ranjan
Chowdhury said here.
He said everyday about four lakh passengers will get SMS alert on their mobiles about the status of their waitlisted tickets.
The software for the SMS-based service has been developed by CRIS, the technological arm of railways.
“The status of the waitlisted tickets will be communicated through SMS
on the passenger mobile phone number given at the time of booking
ticket. So now you will get status alert on your mobile once the
waitlisted ticket becomes reservation against cancellation (RAC) and
also when it gets finally confirmed,” Mr. Chowdhury said.
This
was a Rail Budget proposal and the government was a committed to
providing it to passengers free of cost, he said after launching the SMS
Gateway service.
“Passengers want to know about the
status of the ticket and the new service is certainly going to benefit
passengers and also help reduce load on the railway website,” Railway
Member (Traffic) DP Pandey said.
Mr. Pandey said not
only the status of the ticket, passengers will also get the exact
position of the coach and berth number. “Passengers will get the status
alert three hours before with their coach number and berth number.”
He,
however, clarified that if the waitlisted ticket becomes RAC or
confirmed then only a passenger will be informed through SMS and not
otherwise.
The facility is expected to reduce the
last minute enquiry rush on the rail websites and call centre as well as
reduce the crowding near the notice board of pasted chart locations on
platforms.
