The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has asked the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to do away with service charges on rail tickets booked through its portal.

The regulator has said that service charges discourage people from buying tickets online and, even in the case of cancellation due to non-confirmation of tickets, customers still have to pay the service charge.

"The Commission hopes and trusts that the railways may do away with service charges and other unnecessary restrictions on booking of e-tickets which may not affect its revenues in any significant manner," CCI said in an order.

The Commission also said although service charges imposed are not particularly high, total exclusion of the same may be beneficial to the people.

Railways currently charges Rs 20 for sleeper class and Rs 40 for other classes as service charge for online bookings. On an average, around 13 lakh tickets are booked through IRCTC website per day. "The purpose of e-ticketing is to enhance efficiency and provide better services," the order said.