IRCTC launches mobile portal for ticket bookings

Rail ticket bookings in India is all set to get a major facelift. Keeping in mind the needs of a "tech-savvy" traveler, and to embrace some modern techniques, new-age methods themselves, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) have unveiled their swanky new mobile portal - irctc.co.in/mobile, reports Times of India.

A screenshot of the mobile portal (Image credit: Telecom Talk)

Simply put, now users can book their railway tickets from their mobile phone itself, by clicking the link to the mobile portal, mentioned above. Considering that a sizeable chunk of masses in India are well-connected via Internet on their mobile phones, this move by the IRCTC seems practical. After completing the initial registration and the subsequent software download, users can get down to making their rail bookings. Once the booking is through, users will receive their railway ticket booking details, like the PNR number, date of journey and train number, among other things.

Interestingly, users are prompted to not get a printout of the e-ticket, like they're asked to do otherwise. The report confirms that the virtual message that the users would receive once they're through with the booking will be equivalent to the printout of the e-ticket that they would reproduce when asked for. The report states, "Hence, with the virtual message, passengers would not be required to take a print-out of e-ticket to be carried with them. Showing the reservation message of the confirmed ticket on their mobile during travel will be sufficient. Internet is required on mobile phones to book tickets through mobile."

The service has been rolled out to a huge chunk of users, and those who haven't been able to access it should be able to do so, soon.