IRCTC can emulate Amazon, says railway minister Suresh Prabhu

Being one of the largest e-portals in India with millions of users logging in every day, Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) will soon start selling hand-made products from rural women online, railway minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu said here today.

"Indian Railways is all keen to engage society in its innovative works. While we have already involved a number of public communities and NGOs under our cleanliness drive, we are also encouraging self-help groups of rural women to manufacture products that Railways will sell online through its web portal. The products will range from traditional food to handicrafts, shawls and other ethnic dresses. We have already asked women from Kashmir and northeast to be a part of our initiative and will soon start selling their products," Prabhu said during an interaction with around 4,000 graduates and under-graduates of Kristu Jayanti College.

Comparing IRCTC with e-tail major Amazon, he said that IRCTC can any day become as huge an online store as Amazon and in doing so help rural women become self-dependent and encourage commercialization of indigenous, hand-made products. "However, for attaining that level, we will never stoop low and sell doormats and shoes with tri-colour on them," he quipped.

The minister said the Rs 50 crore allocation made towards innovation in the last year's railway budget included the idea of e-commercialisation of indigenous products, e-catering service, renovation of 400 stations and introduction of super bullet trains. "We are trying to get more allocation for railways in the coming budget so that all this work can be done faster," he said, adding that the government is trying to increase the allocation to railways to Rs 4 lakh crore in the next three years.

Stressing complete electrification of railways to avoid use of diesel and curb pollution, he said that Railways is trying to get 90% of its trains to run on electricity in a few months.

"We are coming up soon with a transformation office that will implement crowd-sourced ideas. In another five years' time, 400 stations across the country will be renovated and will look like five star airports."