Now get railway tickets in post offices!

New Delhi, July 31: Opening up yet another window designed to shorten queues at ticket counters, Railways will now issue computerised reserved rail tickets through the vast network of post offices across the country on a revenue sharing basis with the India Post.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed here today between Indian Railways and Department of Posts (India Post) in the presence of Railway Minister Lalu Prasad and Communications and IT Minister A Raja.

The facility, slated to become effective from August 15, will initially be available in 32 post offices located in various states.

Gradually, it will be expanded to cover more post offices.

However, the facility would come at a price in the form of service charge, ranging between Rs 15 and Rs 30.

For booking a reservation ticket in post office, the service charge will be Rs 15 for Second Class Sleeper and sitting, Rs 20 for AC three tier and chair car and Rs 30 for AC Second Class and First Class. The cancellation charge has been fixed at Rs 10.

The 32 post offices are located in states like Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir, Asom, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Tripura, Gujarat, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Jharkhand.

Hailing the collaboration between the Railways and India Post as ''a historic step'', Mr Prasad said it would make reservaton tickets available right at the doorstep of passengers.

He also defended the service charge on the facility, saying it would be forwarded to post offices for providing computer software and manpower facilities.

Mr Prasad said India Post would issue reserved railway tickets through the computerised Passenger Reservaton System (PRS) counters provided by railways at the designated post offices.

Such post offices wll book all types of ticket, including concession and military vouchers, like any other regular railway reservation counters.

Mr Prasad said the PRS, to be operated by India Post, would be named as ''India Post PRS Centre''. The Railway Ministry will provide hardware, communication equipment and communication channels for which initial as well as recurring cost is to be borne by the ministry. The accommodation, lighting and other infrastructure arrangemnts as well as staff for issuing the tickets will be provided by India Post.

Mr Prasad said in future, the facility of issuing e-tickets would also be provided at selected post offices. For this purpose, a separate agreement will be signed between India Post and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).

The agreement will be valid for five years and will be reviewed annually. After the expiry of the agreement, it will be renewed wth mutual consent.

Mr John Samuel, GM (Business), India Post, said, ''This is a strategic, cost-sharing and win-win move. It will reduce pressure on railways' booking counters while the cash-strapped postal department will get a new stream of income through ticket sales.'' This will also enable the loss-stricken DoP, having a network of 155,000 post offices across the country, to utilise its staff and infrastructure in a better manner in addition to the commission which it will be earning on the service rendered.

He said it would enable post offices to generate additional revenues in the face of competition from private couriers.

In fact, postmen in Jharkhand have already been distributing, along with letters, condoms and contraceptive pills under a tie-up with the Hindustan Latex Family Planning Promotion Trust (HLFPPT).

A ministry official said the collaboration between Indian Railways and Department of Post dated back to 1907 when the Railway Mail Service was launched.

''Now after a hundred years, the ties have deepened that make not only a sound business sense but will also benefit people in a big way.''

UNI