PUNE: All food outlets operated by the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) at stations across the country could be transferred to the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC), said sources in the railways.With the IRSDC handling the re-development plan as well as facility management at stations across the country, sources told TOI that the railway board was seriously considering the transfer in order to streamline and organize things further. Sources added that the plan is to ensure all aspects related to stations and passengers remains with one body so that passengers get quality food.“Yes, discussions pertaining to the same are on at a higher level right now. If the decision of a change comes, things will follow accordingly,” Pune divisional railway manager Milind Deouskar, said during an earlier conversation.In the Pune railway division , 10 outlets, including food stalls and plazas are under IRCTC as of now. Five of 10 outlets, which includes a food plaza, Jan Aahar and some stalls, are at the Pune railway station “The IRSDC is looking after the stations under the centre’s Station Redevelopment Plan. Recently, Central Railway handed IRSDC the job of facility management at the Pune railway station. The IRSDC has further leased the work to Pune-based BVG Group. We feel that the quality of food will improve if it goes under the IRSDC. Though we are not stating that the IRCTC provides bad quality of food, the IRSDC is expected to further lease the food outlets to private professional and expert bodies, who can bring diversity when it comes to food. We are waiting for a final decision. The quality of food is a concern and still there are a lot of complaints from passengers,” said an official at the division.An IRCTC source said that they too were awaiting a decision. “We will have to abide by the decision but I can say that our food quality is good as those involved in its preparation are professionals and mostly graduates from different hotel management institutes. Moreover, now there is a ‘live kitchen’ viewing system too and passengers can actually see their food being cooked in the kitchens of the IRCTC,” the official said.“The railways is closely monitoring whatever work the IRSDC is doing. The IRCTC were selling food in stalls and in trains as per rates fixed by the railways. Even if a change happens, we don’t think the cost of food will increase. Moreover the IRCTC is also sells tickets online. If one looks at the figures, on an average, they are booking 7,200 tickets each minute. So their hands are quite full,” another railway official said.

Stay updated with all the Pune Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.