Indian Railways Starts SMS Alert Service for Cancelled Trains

The Ministry of Railways in a statement on Thursday said it had started another passenger-friendly measure on a pilot-basis, under which SMS messages would be sent to passengers if the train in which they have booked their tickets is cancelled.

"We commenced the SMS-based service from June 21 on all India basis. Under this pilot project, the SMS messages are sent to those passengers who are boarding at originating station. At a later stage, this will be extended to cover en-route stations also,a Railway Ministry spokesman Anil Kumar Saxena told IANS.

"The SMS will be sent to the mobile number entered by the passenger in ticket reservation slips. The cancellation information would be sent in advance to the passengers to help them plan alternative arrangement," he said.

"To avail this facility, passengers have to mention their mobile numbers on the ticket reservation slip," he said.

Isro last week said it will provide navigational support to Indian Railways through 'Gagan' (GPS-aided geo-augmented navigation) system. Gagan is an indigenous navigational guide system developed by Isro on the lines of GPS system of the US.

Earlier this month, IRCTC began offering passengers who fail to get their waitlisted ticket confirmed an option to convert it into an airline ticket at a competitive fare. The Railway PSU has already tied-up with budget carrier GoAir and have sold about 100 tickets through this scheme in the past one month.