Birdres, a Business to Business distribution channel from the Bird Group, has entered into a strategic partnership with Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a public sector company owned by the Ministry of Railways.

Under the partnership, travel agents will have access to IRCTC inventory on the Birdres portal.

It should be noted that this is the first time that IRCTC has partnered with any Global Distribution System (GDS) provider. Apart from expanding the reach for IRCTC, it will provide travel agents with a single access platform for railway bookings.

The latest initiative is in sync with the recent announcements during the Rail Budget to make railway tickets available at more outlets for consumer convenience.

The company official stated in a release that now travel agents need not to use a credit card for the transactions. However a pre-paid amount needs to be deposited with IRCTC thereby ensuring transaction security.

Latest reports suggest that online ticket bookings with the railways have grown more than 100% in the last year with over 25% of the entire railway ticket bookings being carried over the internet.