NEW DELHI: After the turnaround in the last three years, the Railways has drawn an ambitious programme to revamp and transform its catering and other passenger services not only to turn them into major revenue earners but also equip these services with standards matching ISO 2000:2005 (Food Safety Management System) and ISO 2001:2005 (Quality Management System) certification norms.

Suiting the pockets

The catering on the rail will match similar services on the flights. Of course, the rail users would have to pay for it but there would be something suiting the pockets of all kind of rail users with high quality and hygienic standards, P. K. Goel, Managing Director of the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Development Corporation (IRCTC), announced at a media meet here on Wednesday.

Spelling out IRCTC's new vision and mantra as "QSCV — quality, services, cleanliness and value for money," Mr. Goel said it would take about a year to bring about complete transformation through a number of steps ranging from securing ISO certification, professional training for catering staff, base kitchens on the pattern of flight kitchens, on board and station hospitality services besides offering tourism packages at competitive rates suiting all segments. Food plazas, refreshment rooms, ATM's, kiosks and static catering units besides home delivery of tickets and budget hotels were all on the cards.

Redressal mechanism

While public-private participation would be leveraged considerably, he said that high on the agenda was an effective complaint redressal mechanism. Four call centres across the country would be set up soon with three digit numbers for all kind of information on railways, including its tourism packages besides handling and forwarding complaints.

Feedback forms

IRCTC has already introduced feedback pamphlets/forms to be made available at railway stations and trains with a promise of certain response and corrective measures including stern action against erring staff with intimation to the complainant without delay. The website feedbackirctic.com is part of the complaint redressal and monitoring system conceived by IRCTC, he said.

A complete overhaul to give a new image was part of the exercise. The rail users would have to wait for a year.

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