New Delhi: With Indian Railways now serving regional delicacies such as Karnataka’s medu vada, West Bengal’s machher jhol, and Gujarat’s thepla, train journeys have become even more flavourful and enjoyable.
Part of the newly-introduced a-la-carte menu of the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), these regional food items are being served on Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto, Mail/Express and Vande Bharat trains from February this year.
“The prevailing menu has been reviewed in favour of regional preferences, seasonal delicacies, diabetic food options, baby food items as well as millet-based local products for better passenger satisfaction,” a railway official, who wished to not be named, told ThePrint.
Apart from medu vada, fish curry and thepla, some of the other popular regional cuisines incorporated in the menus of Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto and Vande Bharat trains include dalma and chhenna poda (Odisha); set dosai and palkatti Chettinad (Tamil Nadu); pyaz kachori (Rajasthan), kanda poha (Madhya Pradesh) and vada pav (Maharashtra).
In Mail/Express trains, a-la-carte food items such as kachori, thatte idli, idli, sukhiyan, kozhukatta, medu/dal vada, rawa/wheat /oat/semiya upma, onion/rava utthapam, dhokla, poha, gatta sabzi, tamarind/lemon/curd/coconut/rajma/chhole rice, pav bhaji, dal baati churma, fish cutlet, kesari bhat, jhal muri, vada pav, palam puri, pao ghugani, aloo chop, litti chokha, masala dosa, rice dalma, etc., have been added to the menu.
With the central government actively encouraging millet foods in a big way, the IRCTC has also introduced a millet-based menu. “Millet-based items such as millet kachori, millet laddoo, millet khichdi, millet dalia, millet biscuits etc. have been introduced in the revised menu to commemorate 2023 as ‘International Year of Millets’,” said an IRCTC official.
The IRCTC, so far, had to get the menus, consisting mostly of standardised food items and beverages, approved by the Railway Board before it could introduce them in trains. However, in a notification dated 15 November, 2022, the board allowed IRCTC the flexibility to customise their menus. The communication stated that for prepaid trains — in which catering charges are included in the fare — the menu would be decided by the IRCTC within the tariff already notified.
“In addition, sale of a-la-carte meals and branded food items on MRP would be permitted in these prepaid trains. Menu and tariff of such a-la-carte meals will be decided by the IRCTC,” the notification read.
It also mentioned that for other Mail/Express trains, the menu of budget segment items, such as standard meals, would be decided by the IRCTC within the tariff already notified.
The IRCTC has been directed about the need to ensure that quality and standard of food and service are maintained and “safeguards are built in to avoid frequent and undue changes such as curtailment in quantity and quality, and use of inferior brands,” the notification added.
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Other highlights from menu
Now, passengers can get jaggery powder and honey sachets as a healthier alternative to sugar and menus for diabetics and the Jain community have been introduced for each class of Rajdhani/Shatabdi/Duronto trains.
While a ban on single-use plastics exists in the railways, the revised menu also does away with use of plastic containers. Biodegradable material like cornstarch and bagasse will be used as casseroles/containers for food items.
There will also be a 1.5 ml sanitiser sachet (IRCTC-approved brand) given mandatorily with each meal on prepaid trains, and food casseroles will bear details about price, date and time of packaging, name of the licensee, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) marking and other key information.
Responding to a question about introducing more food items in the future, IRCTC officials said menus would be reviewed on the basis of feedback from passengers.
“We will take into account passenger feedback through their interaction with the train crew and those given in writing. The feedback from our regular surveys and that collected by the authorities during train inspection will also be reviewed in meetings,” a source in the railways told ThePrint.
The IRCTC expects to get an idea about the demand for these newly-introduced food items on the basis of the feedback received over six months.
“Upgradation of menus will need to happen periodically otherwise things get monotonous. After we implement a service, it takes about six months to know the actual demand for different food items. So, we need to get through a longer period to better assess the situation,” the source added.
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