Vodafone has teamed up with Bharat BPO to facilitate railway ticket booking via M-Pesa. Bharat BPO is the official Rail Sampark partner of Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) .
The service will allow customers to download mobile application “139 Railways Reservation”. Vodafone customers can download the application by sending an SMS “TICKET” to 111. Once accessed, the app prompts users with interactive and guided menu options towards booking tickets.
“This would open up and extend the convenience and efficiency of e-Commerce and online services to those unbanked millions who are operating with cash and are otherwise excluded from this eco-system. This new app based offering empowers our customers to book railway e-tickets, seek PNR status, cancel tickets, get refunds, all at their own convenience, through their mobile handset. We are extending a highly safe and secure technology platform that works even for customers who do not have an Internet connection.”
said Suresh Sethi, Business Head – M-Pesa, Vodafone India in an official release.
The service can be used for booking railway e-tickets, seek PNR status, cancel tickets, get refunds, and more. One of the main features of the service is that it can be used even without an internet connection. Vodafone M-Pesa customers can send in their booking details through “139 Railways Reservation” app and only have to enter their M-PIN to authorize the transaction. The SMS based booking on 139 is available for all feature phone customers while the application is also compatible with Android and J2ME handsets.