As Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu sets out to work on a comprehensive plan, here's what you can expect from this new policy:
Image for representation. Photo source: Wikimedia
1) One big change will be that the cooking and distribution of food will be taken up by two different service providers. Distribution would be undertaken by stakeholders from the hospitality industry. 2) The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation will be put in charge of on-board catering from here on. While they used to have this position earlier, they were removed from these duties in 2010. Now, the IRCTC will take over in a phased manner.You may also like: Indian Railways Building 160 Kmph Speed ‘World Class’ Train Sets at Half the Cost of Imported Ones
3) According to the ministry, the cooking will now take place in state-of-the-art kitchens. Base kitchens will be set up in major railway stations additionally. 4) Food stalls at railway stations will no longer be permanent fixtures. There will now be a 5-year tenure that all stalls would have to adhere to. 5) In a bid to ensure that there are equal and fair employment opportunities through this policy, there will be 33% of sub quota allotment for women when it comes to the allotment of food stalls.