Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1999
- HeadquartersNew Delhi, India
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp.
- Legal name
- Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd.
- Website
- https://irctc.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1999
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Railway Catering and Tourism Services
- NAICS
- Travel Agencies (561510)
- SIC
- Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Air Transportation, Scheduled (4512)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Account-Based Ticketing (ABT) Platforms (THAIAMAA)
Keywords
Where Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New Delhi
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices36 records
Markets served
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Internet Ticketing: Government-authorized monopoly for online railway ticketing. Revenue comes from convenience fees charged on ticket bookings. FY 2024-25 saw 5,065 lakh tickets booked, with Indian Railways recording ₹70,215 crore in total ticket fare collection.
- Catering & Hospitality: One of the largest hospitality and catering companies in India with vast gamut of businesses spread over passenger trains, railway stations, and station premises. Includes mobile catering (460+ trains), static catering (Food Plazas, Fast Food Units, Refreshment Rooms), and e-catering services.
- Travel & Tourism: Operates luxury tourist trains (Maharajas' Express, Golden Chariot, Bharat Gaurav trains), rail tour packages (70+ packages), hotels, air ticketing, bus ticketing, and cruise bookings. Ranges from Rs. 900 per day to USD 900 per day.
- Packaged Drinking Water (Rail Neer): 19 operational Rail Neer Plants producing packaged drinking water. Cumulative production capacity of 18.40 lakh bottles per day. Plants operate in PPP mode in various locations across India.
- Advertising Revenue: Push notification services and digital marketing campaigns generate advertising revenue. Achieved highest-ever one-day Google Ad Manager revenue of more than Rs. 14 lakhs on October 27, 2024.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Bharat Gaurav Train Pilgrimage Packages |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Maharajas' Express Luxury Train |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Golden Chariot Luxury Train |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Air Ticketing Convenience Fee |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Dubai Tour Package 2026 |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels9 records
Marketing channels8 records
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IRCTC operates India's government-authorized online railway ticketing platform (Next Generation e-Ticketing) processing over 5,065 lakh tickets annually. It also delivers onboard and station-based catering services across 460+ trains and 300+ stations, operates luxury and pilgrimage tourist trains (Maharajas' Express, Golden Chariot, Bharat Gaurav), and manufactures packaged drinking water under the Rail Neer brand through 19 production plants.
Product overview
IRCTC operates as a multi-service digital platform offering a unified portfolio of rail ticketing, catering, tourism, and packaged water products. The core platform is the Next Generation e-Ticketing (NGeT) system accessible via www.irctc.co.in website and IRCTC Rail Connect Mobile App, which handles over 86% of reserved railway ticket bookings in India. This core platform is augmented by the e-Catering (Food on Track) service for onboard meal ordering, the IRCTC Payments subsidiary for payment aggregation, and the IRCTC Tourism Mobile App for travel packages. The catering vertical includes mobile services on 460+ trains and 144 Food Plazas, 160 Fast Food Units, and 11 Base Kitchens. Tourism offerings encompass luxury trains (Maharajas' Express, Golden Chariot), theme-based Bharat Gaurav trains, Buddhist Circuit Tourist Train, and over 70 Rail Tour Packages. The Rail Neer packaged drinking water business operates 19 production plants with 18.40 lakh bottles per day capacity. Air ticketing, bus ticketing, and cruise bookings extend the platform into multi-modal travel. A new RailOne app consolidates these services with legacy railway information systems into a single unified interface.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Maharajas' Express: Luxury tourist train voted as the Leading Luxury Train of the World for 7 years in a row (2012-2018) by World Travel Awards
- Bharat Gaurav Train
- Golden Chariot
- Buddhist Circuit Tourist Train
- Tejas Express
- Rail Neer
Products and services
- Internet Ticketing (Next Generation e-Ticketing)
- IRCTC Rail Connect Mobile App
Quantifiable outcome
- 30,155 tickets booked in a single minute - record per-minute booking capacity
- +7 more outcomes
Companies that use Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp.
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration10 records
AI capability5 records
Feature5 records
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Sri Sai EnterprisesminorSri Sai Enterprises operates the new Food Plaza inaugurated at platform no. 1 of Visakhapatnam Railway Station under contract awarded by IRCTC.
- CleartripcoreCleartrip launched train ticket booking services in partnership with IRCTC, targeting single-digit market share in India's online train ticketing segment. The platform offers booking across all Indian rail routes including General and Tatkal quotas with features such as real-time seat availability, fare insights, PNR tracking, and digital payments.
- Mayfair Spring Valley ResortminorMayfair Spring Valley Resort, an Assam-based luxury hospitality brand, secured the catering contract for India's first Vande Bharat Sleeper Train through partnership with IRCTC. This is a first for a Northeast-based hospitality firm.
- IRCTC Payments LimitedcoreWholly-owned subsidiary incorporated on 10-02-2024 for payment aggregator business. Authorized Share Capital: INR 25 Crores, Paid-up Share Capital: INR 25 Crores. Received in-principle approval from RBI to become payment aggregator.
- Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum (BPCL), Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL)coreIRCTC tied up with major oil marketing companies for priority LPG supply under government directives due to supply disruptions caused by shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz.
- RBL BankminorRBL Bank Cobrand Credit Card integrated under IRCTC Loyalty Program on IRCTC website w.e.f. 14.09.2024 and on IRCTC Mobile App w.e.f. 01.02.2025.
- SBI (State Bank of India)minorIRCTC SBI Loyalty Programme enhanced by integrating SBI Rupay Premium Credit Card, on website effective from 01.10.2024.
- Bank of BarodaminorDigital marketing campaign started with Bank of Baroda for digital promotion and lead generation on 10-Oct-2023.
- HDFC BankminorDigital marketing campaign with HDFC Bank started on 16-Nov-2023 for promotion and lead generation.
- Urban Pod Pvt LtdminorUrban Pod collaborated with IRCTC to launch pod concept rooms at Mumbai Central railway station, representing a significant development in India's rail hospitality sector.
- Royal Sundaram General InsuranceminorM/s Royal Sundaram General Insurance enrolled to provide travel insurance services to E-ticket passengers. Insurance premium rate revised from Rs 0.35 to 0.45 w.e.f. 17-02-2024.
- Araha Hospitality Pvt LtdminorCatering firm contracted to prepare meals for Rajdhani Express trains from its licensed base kitchen at Surat. IRCTC imposed Rs 1 lakh penalty and show-cause notice for quality issues.
- Cafe Air Caterers and Flight Services (CAFS)minorCAFS serves meals on board Kerala Vande Bharat Express trains. Introduced new regional menu with Malabar chicken curry, biryani, and local South Indian flavors.
Scale indicators32 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Thomas Cook (India): Long-standing Indian travel company operating outbound and domestic tour packages, forex, and corporate travel. Comparable to IRCTC's tourism packages, Maharajas' Express premium offerings, and Bharat Gaurav pilgrimage circuits.
- MakeMyTrip: India's largest online travel agency covering flights, hotels, holiday packages, and rail (via the IRCTC partnership). Comparable to IRCTC's tourism, air ticketing, and hotel/holiday packages verticals, even though IRCTC retains a regulatory monopoly in rail ticketing.
- Cleartrip: Indian OTA that partnered with IRCTC for train ticketing and offers flights, hotels, and holidays. A channel partner for IRCTC rail bookings, yet a horizontal OTA competitor on flights, hotels, and packages.
- ixigo (Le Travenues Technology): Indian OTA and meta-search platform offering flights, trains, buses, and hotels. Overlaps with IRCTC's air ticketing portal, bus booking, and rail-adjacent content, and competes for the same India leisure-travel wallet.
- SOTC Travel: Indian tour operator running leisure, pilgrimage, and corporate travel packages including rail-themed itineraries. Direct competitor in the same domestic holiday and pilgrimage package market as IRCTC's Bharat Gaurav and Rail Tour products.
- Yatra Online: Listed Indian OTA covering flights, hotels, holidays, and corporate travel. Comparable to IRCTC's tourism packages and air ticketing portal on customer base and tech platform.
Broad incumbents
- Booking Holdings (Booking.com / Priceline): Global OTA conglomerate also the parent of MakeMyTrip. Comparable to IRCTC's online travel distribution at scale, though not focused on rail or India-specific government-monopolized categories.
- Trip.com Group: Global OTA with strong Asia presence (Trip.com, Ctrip, Skyscanner). Comparable to IRCTC's tourism and air ticketing verticals through scale of multi-modal travel distribution.
- Expedia Group: Global online travel conglomerate operating multiple brands (Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo). Comparable to IRCTC's multi-product travel platform model at much broader global scale.
Emerging players
- RailRestro: Third-party e-catering aggregator delivering meals on Indian trains via partner restaurants. Direct competitor to IRCTC's e-Catering (Food on Track) vertical across the same 300-station and onboard meal ordering market.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights8 records
Customer concentration
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. social profiles
Digital presenceIndian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp.
What does Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. do?
IRCTC operates India's government-authorized online railway ticketing platform (Next Generation e-Ticketing) processing over 5,065 lakh tickets annually. It also delivers onboard and station-based catering services across 460+ trains and 300+ stations, operates luxury and pilgrimage tourist trains (Maharajas' Express, Golden Chariot, Bharat Gaurav), and manufactures packaged drinking water under the Rail Neer brand through 19 production plants.
Is Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. a public or private company?
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. is a public company. It is classified as public and is currently operating.
When was Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. founded?
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. was founded in 1999. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. based?
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. is headquartered in New Delhi, India, in the Asia region.
How does Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Internet Ticketing is the primary driver. The others are catering & Hospitality, travel & Tourism, packaged Drinking Water (Rail Neer) and advertising Revenue.
Who are Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp.'s main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Thomas Cook (India), MakeMyTrip, Cleartrip, ixigo (Le Travenues Technology), SOTC Travel and Yatra Online. Broad incumbents are Booking Holdings (Booking.com / Priceline), Trip.com Group and Expedia Group. RailRestro is listed as an emerging player.
Does Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. have an API?
No public API is recorded for Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp..
What industry is Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp. in?
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp.'s product category is Railway Catering and Tourism Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAIAMAA, Account-Based Ticketing (ABT) Platforms. Its NAICS code is 561510 and its SIC code is 7990.