Soon, train travellers can e-order food before hopping on

Soon, you can please your palete with the meal of your choice without having to bring food from home.

Online food ordering platform Foodpanda proposes to associate with Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a subsidiary of the Indian Railways that handles the catering, tourism, and online ticketing operations of the Indian railways. The station-based “Food on Track” service expands the train-based e-catering service, which was announced in the 2015-16 railway budget to enable passengers to book and receive meals at their berth while traveling.

The orders will have to be placed before at least 2 hours and will be handled by Foodpanda which will then make use of its existing services to fulfil them, delivering food directly to consumers on the platform itself. “We are happy that we will be able to offer wider food choices to our consumers with this association, and once our pilot project is successful, we will extend the service to more locations”, he added. However, the newly launched e-catering service by IRCTC, which has been approved by he ministry of railways, is set to change the way Indians eat while ravelling.

While the partnership has materialised, the date of rollout of the pilot, which will start with New Delhi Railway Station, has yet to be confirmed or finalised, a spokesperson for Foodpanda told Gadgets 360.

“Our association with IRCTC will be an offering which addresses a huge consumer need prevailing for years”. In coming days this offer will be extended to passenger boarding their trains from Delhi, Bangalore, Vizag and Pune.

The e-catering facility allows passengers to order meals while travelling, either online at www.ecatering.irctc.co.in or by making a phone call to 0120-2383892-99 or the toll-free number at 1800-1034-139. It had, just about a week ago, partnered with another startup Hello Curry, to provide commuters with food delivery options in a few of the major metropolitan railway stations. Foodpanda would also provide the cash-on-delivery option.