Despite the government’s Digital India push, more than half of all the train tickets in the country are purchased in cash, finds a survey by RailYatri.in, the train travel community in India.
According to the company, an estimated 10 million rail tickets are booked by paying cash. It said that this is not because the train travellers necessarily prefer it that way, but the sale of reserved train tickets through authorised agents continues to be in cash. Authorised agents alone contribute an estimated half of reserved train tickets.
The finding, which is based on a countrywide survey of consumers and ticketing agents, also stressed that correction is needed immediately to enhance digital payments.
The survey also found that while the larger agents have mechanisms of accepting digital payments, their train ticket booking is nearly 100% in cash. While consumers have increasingly shown an inclination towards digital payment, the travel agents still shun from accepting these. Much of it, according to them, is due to the outdated ticketing rules and penalty imposed on them.
It also found that the unrealistic rule of imposing a cap on Payment Gateway (PG) charges at 0.7% (for train tickets priced less than Rs 2,000) is completely out of tune with the average bank charges, which the agents have to pay.
According to RailYatri, the typical PG charges vary between 1.5% and 2% depending on the provider, with most providers falling on the higher side.