Passengers travelling on IRCTC’s Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express will get a free rail travel insurance of ₹25 lakh each, offer of luggage ferried from their homes to seats at a cost and even have exclusive lounges to relax, according to plans drafted by the railway subsidiary which will run its first train from next month.
The Delhi-Lucknow and Mumbai-Ahmedabad Tejas Express trains will be the first trains to be run by the IRCTC, a railway subsidiary, becoming test cases for Indian Railways’ move to hand over certain trains to private operators.
“Passengers of IRCTC’s Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express to get free ₹25 lakh rail travel insurance. The passengers of this train will also be given the facility of using retiring rooms at Lucknow junction station and executive lounge at New Delhi Railway station and lounge for meetings on demand,” a document enumerating the operational details of the train said.
No concessions, privileges or duty passes will be allowed on these trains. Also, children above the age of 5 will be charged full fare.
“There will be no facility of tatkal. Five seats each will be reserved for foreign tourists in Executive Class and AC Chair car,” it said.
The document also said that the fares of the train will be dynamic and will be decided based on peak or lean season, festival season and according to demand. Prices will be competitively decided based on taxi, bus and flight fares on the same route.
Unlike the 120 day advance booking allowed across the railway network, IRCTC’s train will allow such booking 60 days prior to day of journey.
