Budget 2017: No service charge on online rail tickets

IRCTC charges Rs 40 as service charge on AC class tickets

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley gave rail commuters a major reason to cheer. All e-tickets booked through the IRCTC website will get cheaper. Jaitley announced that no service charge will be levied on tickets booked through the IRCTC website. IRCTC charges Rs 40 on every ticket booked in air-conditioned classes. For sleeper class, a service charge of Rs 20 is levied by IRCTC when ticket is booked through its website.

The government had been planning this move for the last few months now. Demands for scrapping the charge had gained momentum after demonetization when many people were forced to book railway tickets online due to paucity of cash.   

Reports suggest that IRCTC derives a third of its revenue from service charge. Jaitley however also hinted that railway tickets may get more expensive. The railways plans to price tickets after taking into consideration the actual cost of a journey. At the moment, railway fares are heavily subsidized by the government.