Indian Railways Launches Super App ‘SwaRail’ For Beta Testing

Indian Railways is piloting a super app ‘SwaRail’ to bring all railway-related services under one roof.

Launched for beta testing on Friday (January 31), the super app integrates various railway services like reserved and unreserved booking tickets, parcel and freight enquiries, train and PNR status enquiries, ordering food online on trains, and registering complaints. 

This comes four months after railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, in September 2024, said that the ministry was developing such a super app. 

The app is available on Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The railways ministry said that the offering will be rolled out for the general public after a thorough evaluation and trial run. 

Developed by the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), the super app integrates offerings of all public-facing apps of the Indian Railways into one single platform. The ministry has also sought public feedback on the app’s user experience in the beta phase to improve its functioning. 

“This initiative is a significant step toward leveraging technology to enhance convenience for railway users. The super app provides smarter, simpler, and more efficient access to Indian Railways services. The super app beta testing phase is being closely monitored by the CRIS team to ensure timely resolution of user feedback and suggestions,” the ministry said in a statement. 

It also outlined the key features of the new app:

• Users will be able to access the services using a single set of credentials
• All services offered by various apps of the railways ministry will now be accessible through a unified app
• Services will be integrated to deliver comprehensive information from multiple sources in a cohesive and unified manner
• The signup process has been simplified to enhance the user experience and make the app easily accessible
• Multiple login options have been provided to improve user experience

The development also comes a month after Vaishnaw reiterated in the Parliament that the ministry was working on a super app which will allow users to book unreserved tickets, file complaints and check availability of trains and their schedule. 

Previous reports claimed that the super app would be developed by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). 

The latest development comes at a time when many players in the startup ecosystem are moving towards super apps. Fintech giants such as CRED, PhonePe and Groww have bundled all of their offerings into a single app.