Page 40 - PR Communication Age - JULY 2016
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ministry to develop smart railway sta to Rs 2,000. The exact amount will de leaving it to market forces.
tions that would give passengers a pend on the destination and the avail
great experience. ability of an Air India connection be OYO to tie up with states
tween the boarding and destination for tourism
Govt to build 1,000 km of points, an IRCTC official said.
expressways for Rs. 16,680 Hotel room aggregator OYO said it is
cr All trains to have bio-toi- working with several state govern
lets by 2019 ments including Maharashtra and
To ensure quicker connectivity, the Telangana to develop a tourism ecosys
government plans to build 1,000 km of Stepping up efforts to make environ tem.
expressways at an investment of Rs ment better, the Railways has set a
16,680 crore under its NHDP target to install biotoilets in all The company has signed a MoU with
programme, which include the coaches to ensure the entire rail net the Uttarakhand government to de
VadodaraMumbai project. The main work as zero discharge zone by 2019. velop the hospitality ecosystem and to
criterion for the selection of express better equip local home stays.
way corridors is traffic volume, with "Our target was to install biotoilets in
the government approving the high all our coaches by 2021. But now we The company said it currently runs 15
density corridor i.e. VadodaraMumbai have advanced it to 2019," Railway home stays registered with the
(400 km) for feasibility study. It was Board Chairman AK Mital said at the Uttarakhand government and the tar
also decided that the remaining 600 km World Environment Day function in get is to reach 50 by the end of this
will be selected out of the routes iden New Delhi. According to the action year. The standardisation process will
tified on the basis of traffic volume. plan, the Railways will install 1.40 lakh be followed by listing and marketing
biotoilets in about 55,000 coaches in these properties on OYO's channels.
Rajdhani waitlist passen- the next three years. It has installed
gers can upgrade seat to about 37,000 till now. "There will be a significant push in
Air India soon Uttrakhand over the next two to three
Aviation policy puts small months, and we are also working with
Some Rajdhani waitlisted passengers towns on the map for fly- state governments in Maharashtra and
could soon be provided the option of ers Telengana and several others in the
upgrading their tickets to Air India by pipeline", said Abhinav Sinha, COO,
paying a little extra. The government is aiming to put small OYO.
towns on the aviation map and cap
The Centreowned airline and the In ping fares at Rs 2,500 an hour for lo Flyer to pay less for excess
dian Railway Catering and Tourism cations that have so far been un baggage from June 15
Corporation (IRCTC) are currently touched by air connectivity.
finalising the arrangement and it could Excess baggage will now be easier on
be offered to passengers from next While there is a ceiling on fares, those the flyer's pocket with the govern
month, railway ministry officials said. flying from metros or large cities will ment reducing charges to Rs. 100 for
have to pay a "small levy" to fund every kilo above the 15kg free baggage
According to Air India chief Ashwani building of nofrills airports. The Cen allowance till a 20kg limit. The new
Lohani, a formal pact has already been tre and states will chip in with funds charges kick in on June 15.
inked for the scheme under such pas and other concessions.
sengers will have to click the "airline At present, all domestic carriers, ex
upgrade" option while booking on the The plan, which has been in the works cept Air India, charge Rs. 300 per kg
IRCTC portal. While First AC waitlisted for the past few months, is part of the of extra baggage. The national carrier
Rajdhani passengers will not be charged new civil aviation policy that was ap allows 25kg of free checkedin luggage
anything extra, those holding Second proved by the Cabinet. Announcing the on most of its flights. "A final view on
and Third AC tickets will have to pay up policy, civil aviation minister Ashok these will be taken once we receive
Gajapathi Raju ruled out capping do comments from stakeholders," DGCA
mestic air fares on existing routes, chief M Sathiyavathy said.
40 PR COMMUNICATION AGE July 2016
