New Delhi: Passengers booking tickets online via IRCTC pay more than those purchasing physically at railway counters because of convenience fee and transaction charges, the government said in the Rajya Sabha on Friday.

Responding to questions raised by Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut regarding discrepancies in IRCTC ticket pricing, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnwa said, “IRCTC incurs a substantial expenditure on providing online ticketing facility and in order to defray the cost incurred in maintenance, upgradation and expansion of ticketing infrastructure, a convenience fee is levied by IRCTC.”

“In addition, customers also pay transaction charges to banks,” Vaishnaw added. Raut wanted to know the reasons why passengers booking tickets online via IRCTC pay more than those purchasing tickets physically at railway counters. “The online ticket booking facility provided by the IRCTC is one of the most passenger friendly initiatives of Indian Railways. At present, more than 80 per cent of the reserved tickets are booked online,” Vaishnaw said.

“The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has provided the facility to book reserved tickets online, saving passengers from the botheration of going to reservation counters to book tickets, thus saving travel time and transportation costs,” he added.