Indian Railway: Buying a train ticket at ticket counter, why is it more cheaper than the IRCTC app? Crores of passengers traveling from railway often come to the mind of why buying train ticket counter is cheaper than online. Why is this difference due to the seat and train being the same. The government has answered this. Common people in the country can book train tickets both online and offline.
Online Ticket Booking – IRCTC
Railway passengers can book online tickets through the official website and mobile app of IRCTC (Indian Railway Cating and Tourism Corporation). For this, passengers are required to create an account on IRCTC. Online booking protects passengers from the problem of going to the ticket counter of the station and makes the train easier.
Offline Ticket Booking – Railway Counter
Apart from online booking, passengers can also book tickets from PRS (Passenger Reservation System) counter at the railway station. This is a computerized system, where passengers can reserve their seat or cancel the ticket. The PRS counters are usually open from 8 am to 8 pm, but the time can change according to the place.
What is the difference between IRCTC vs railway counter ticket?
Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut questioned in Parliament as to why the passengers have to pay more money on booking online tickets, while the ticket is cheaper from the counter. He asked whether the government is planning to improve the charge of IRCTC’s ticket booking service? To this, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav replied that IRCTC provides the facility of online ticket booking to passengers, so that they do not need to go to the railway counter. This saves their time.
Fees are charged to keep IRCTC system better
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that IRCTC has to spend a lot in maintaining, upgrading and expanding the online ticketing system. For this reason, convenience fees are charged from passengers. Apart from this, banks also have to pay transaction charges on online booking. However, this facility of IRCTC has proved to be very beneficial for passengers and now more than 80% of tickets are booked online.
Is online booking better?
Online ticket booking where time saves time. At the same time, it can be a bit expensive due to convenience fees. But most passengers are now giving priority to online ticket booking. This is the easiest way to book a fast, easy and without line in any line. If you want to avoid convenience fees, then you can book tickets from the railway counter. But if you want to save time, you can take advantage of IRCTC’s online service.