Sri Lanka’s e-ticketing and e-train booking system was completely digitised for commuters and Government employees using warrants by the Sri Lanka Railway (SLR) in collaboration with Sri Lanka Telecom and Mobitel under the guidance of Minister of Transport, Highways and Mass Media, Dr. Bandula Gunawardena. The fully digitised e-ticketing system was officially launched at Fort Railway Station last week.
The updated system lets commuters and tourists easily purchase e-tickets online and is slated to solve many inconveniences faced when reserving seats. This update also introduced e-train passes for Government employees and pensioners. You can also book your tickets on the go or from any railway station with the M-ticketing facility at any time. You can also call Mobitel (365) and Dialog (444) hotlines to book railway tickets. Tickets can also be booked via SLT landlines. Subscribers of these cellular providers have the convenience of getting the ticket money deducted from their prepaid bill or being added to the post paid bill.
With the new e-ticket and e-train pass system, tourists and commuters can enjoy the convenience of a comprehensive transparent system and save money. Speaking on this occasion, Minister Dr. Gunawardena said: “Issuing digitised tickets and public servant railway passes for the first time marks a turning point in the history of 160 years of SLR and this goal was achieved by overcoming many great challenges, which is truly special. This is the first time in history where you can book train tickets and seats on your phone; putting an end to spending hours buying tickets with cash.”
“Seventy years after independence, Sri Lanka faced an unprecedented economic collapse in 2022. For the first time after independence, the economic growth rate became minus eight. The whole country shrank. Due to the lack of foreign exchange required for international payments, we didn’t have essentials such as fuel, mineral oil, gas, and medicines. There was civil unrest.
Clear vision
President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who accepted to find solutions to this economic crisis and foreign exchange crisis, with a clear vision to rebuild the country, reached a policy decision that all actions in various sectors such as politics, consumption and exchange should be digitised.
“There are several main institutions that generate State revenue like the Inland Revenue Department, Customs Department, Excise Department and Motor Transport Commissioner Department.
The Railway Department can be pointed out as an institution that should provide such income to the Government but it does not do that. Since income from all these departments is not enough, throughout history, every Government has been run while incurring both domestic and foreign debt. It became so serious that in 2023, only three trillion rupees was received by the Treasury from all revenue generation channels.
“That year, 13 trillion rupees have been drawn out of the Treasury for payments such as Government employee salaries, pensions, welfare subsidies including welfare and household transfers, interest payments, certain loan repayments and infrastructure development. Accordingly, 10 trillion rupees have been taken as loans that year.
This situation is not even accepted by the people trying to gain political mileage. So we made a promise to the world about paying the debt that cannot be paid at present. Based on agreements reached, further negotiations are currently being held with International Monetary Fund (IMF) experts. One of the main tasks of those negotiations is to increase the Government’s revenue.
“I strongly believe that by fully digitising the Customs Department, Inland Revenue Department, Excise Department, Motor Transport Commissioner Department and the Railway Department, the three trillion currently received by the Treasury can be increased to at least five trillion.
This can create a surplus in the Primary Account of the State’s Budget. Income can be more than recurring expenses. Debt burden can be reduced. From the day I took office, I made a great effort to convert ticketing services including railways into an e-ticketing system. Especially since over Rs.10 million is lost daily due to ticket fraud in the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB).
Cabinet papers were presented to digitise this process and the Cabinet referred to various committees. The committees conducted procurement activities but to no successful result. Engineer Ranjith Rubasinghe, an officer with high experience and experience in the private sector, was appointed as the Secretary of the Ministry. It was possible to make this into a practical reality thanks to the contribution of all parties, including the new secretary and Railway Department officials, which many thought would never be possible.
Modern world
If the changes are made that way, instead of looking at the problems with spite, it is possible to make the country successful by experimenting with the solutions available in the modern world. Steps should be taken to increase the output and productivity of the country as much as possible. Effectiveness can be developed through technology, human capital and management. By implementing these methods in Government institutions in a proper manner, it is possible to make the country economically better.
There is a special program to manage assets owned by the Railway Department under the “Station Plaza” concept. Without privatising any plots owned by the Railway Department, we have taken steps to implement an advanced system followed by many countries by giving underutilised assets to effective investments under a long-term lease basis.
Through this, there is a possibility of increasing the amount of revenue earned by the SLR. For this purpose, the Colombo Central Railway Commercial Office has been extended to the outlying areas of Colombo. I believe that the future of the country will be better by doing this.”
Secretary of the Ministry of Transport and Highways Ranjith Ganganath Rubasinghe, Secretary of the Ministry of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils and Local Government Pradeep Yasaratne, Secretary of the Ministry of Electricity and Energy Sulakshana Jayawardena, Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Lands H.M.P.B. Herath, Sri Lanka Telecom Chief Executive Officer Janaka Abeysinghe, Mobitel Chief Operating Officer Sudarshan Giganage, Railway General Manager H.M.K.W. Bandara and a large number of commuters were present on this occasion.
Translated by Jonathan Frank
