Rail passengers will reportedly be able to book tickets through a mobile phone starting July 1 as Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) will launch an SMS-based ticketing service.

Citing a senior IRCTC official, PTI reported on Tuesday that SMS-based ticket booking service would make the task much easier and convenient as users will be able to book tickets from anywhere and anytime.

The official said that the sender of the SMS would get a transaction ID and then the sender would make the payment by sending another SMS by typing PAY followed by the transaction ID, MMID and the OTP.

The official added that it would be an environment-friendly step as there would be no requirement of a paper. Speaking on the topic, the official said, "There will be no requirement of a print-out because the ticketing message will be considered valid during the journey."

The service will be made available to all mobile subscribers. Charge per SMS has been fixed at Rs 3, while payment gateway charges for tickets amounting up to Rs 5,000 and more than Rs 5,000 have been fixed at Rs 5 and Rs
10, respectively.

The launch of the SMS-based ticket booking system is being considered as a move to make the most of the fast expanding mobile phone market in India.