IRCTC plans to merge its online travel agency (OTA) platforms to improve hotel and air bookings, alongside MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) activities through a unified portal. The move is aimed at shoring up non-railway tourism revenues.

Nearly 30 per cent of its revenues are in the non-railway tourism segment.

“We have around 30 per cent going in the non-railway revenue also. And we are planning to merge all the OTA platforms for improving our hotel bookings, MICE activities and air bookings. We are planning to have a unified portal and which will be a good trigger to give a good business going forward,” Sanjay Kumar Jain, Chairman and Managing Director, IRCTC, said during a recent investor call.

Air packages segment in non-railway tourism grew 28 per cent y-o-y in FY25; the CMD said, indicating that there was further potential in tapping into the segment. Revenues increased to ₹87 crore in FY25, as against ₹68 crore in FY24.

At present, IRCTC does not have a single “unified portal” for both hotel and air bookings. Instead, they have separate platforms for each service, for instance, irctctoursim.com for tours and packages, the air.irctc.co.in for air ticketing, and hotels.irctc.co.in for hotel bookings

Jain said while a railway super-app, SwaRail, was launched in May, IRCTC will only be dealing with reserved ticketing segment only. It does not have plans to enter into other sectors. SwaRail also has parcel and goods movement bookings, and other options.

“We are dealing only with one part of it, that is reservation, so reserve ticketing. So far, ticketing is concerned, it will continue like that. And we are not entering into other ventures,” he added.

Fintech Foray

IRCTC is also seeking a payment aggregator licence. In December, it has applied to the RBI and queries raised by the central bank have been answered. In all likelihood, an in-principle approval is expected in the next 2–3 months.

Post this, IRCTC will have to seek final approvals, which is expected to take another one year.

“We have submitted in principle approval with RBI in December 2024. They have asked for certain clarification, which we have already replied and awaiting their response. They take their own time, but we are chasing it,” Jain said.

A payment aggregator licence would enable IRCTC to facilitate merchant and e-commerce sites in accepting various payment instruments from customers.

As per the original RBI notification, a payment aggregator is an entity that facilitates e-commerce sites and merchants to accept various payment instruments. The aggregators facilitate merchants to connect with acquirers. In the process, they receive payments from customers, pool and transfer them on to the merchants after a time period.

Published on June 11, 2025