Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), the catering and e-ticketing arm of Indian Railways, will soon be setting up its first pod hotel at the Mumbai Central railway station. It has been reported that waiting rooms located on the first floor of Mumbai Central railway station are likely to be converted into a pod hotel.
Once ready, the IRTC pod hotel will consist of a building with multiple extremely small and ultra-modern capsules or pods that will provide overnight accommodation to passengers at an affordable price. It will also boast a lounge area, changing areas, washrooms as well as a cafeteria. The IRCTC pods are likely to provide accommodation to passengers for up to 12 hours. Besides, the passengers will be given an option to choose between Classic and Suite pods. The Classic pods will cater to one passenger and will be equipped with lockers, baggage space and charging sockets. While the Suite pods will consist of a large bed for two passengers, WiFi service and personal lockers.
As per IRCTC, the pod hotel is expected to be cheaper than the retiring rooms that are available. The official also reported that the tendering process for the construction of pods has commenced and it is aiming to launch the pod hotel service by the month of December 2020.
