Railway ministry mandates online booking for goods transport starting Nov 1
In line with its attempts to digitise its records, the Ministry of Railways has mandated online registration for transportation of goods with the national transporter. The new guidelines will come into effect starting November 1.
According to the notification issued by the ministry on Monday, the move has been undertaken “with the objective to achieve digitalisation, minimising detention to rolling stock and streamlining transactions in freight business.”
The new guidelines will apply to all indents placed with zonal railways, with the exception of military traffic, goods transported during natural disasters, and events identified as force majeure by authorities.
The new policy will replace the current practice of approaching goods clerks to register demand for wagons, and necessary changes in the digital infrastructure will be undertaken by the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) and Freight Operations Information Systems (FOIS).
