ClearTrip's Train Search Bot for Gtalk

Technology never ceases to amaze us! Cleartrip's Train Search Bot is yet another example of how processes evolve, and how technology plays a pivotal role in aligning these processes with our day-to-day activities. Gone are the days when we had to stand in serpentine queues to get a train ticket; online ticket booking changed it all - with few clicks and few details in the right fields, we got the tickets. But now, online ticket booking is transcending to the next level - Natural Language Search!

Using something as simple as a chat client, ClearTrip has come up with an innovative product to help search/book trains via its Train Search Bot for Gtalk [in fact all Jabber clients can use this bot]. The process is fairly simple. You just need to add cleartrip.train@gmail.com or cleartrip.trains@jabber.org to your Gtalk buddy list, and you are good to go! From there on, just type in what you are looking for - trains between a pair of stations, availability of tickets in a particular train, or do you wish to book a ticket - it is all possible.

The best part is, one really doesn't have to bother about the exact input to the bot. Type what you feel like, and if something is missing, the bot will ask for it. But that doesn't meant you can type all garbage in there. Few keywords have been defined for this bot, based on which the bot identifies the action you wish to perform.

Like if you wish to search for trains between Indore & New Delhi (3rd AC) on March 20, enter
'Indore to New Delhi on March 20 3AC'
[Natural Language search in action here], and you will have your result as
2919 - Malwa express Rs. 980, @ 12:25 [Available 68]
2415 - Nizamuddin exp Rs. 891, @ 16:20 [R.a.c. 7]

To search for the trains for return journey simply enter 'return' and the train listing will come.

If you want to check the availability of tickets in the train you just searched, enter
'avail 2415'
and you will have your result as
On 20 Mar Waitlist 19
On 21 Mar Waitlist 32
On 22 Mar Waitlist 37
On 23 Mar Waitlist 7
On 24 Mar Waitlist 14 On 25 Mar Waitlist 10
Notice the bot takes the date of journey as the date for which you want to check the availability.

It is also possible to book train tickets using this bot. Simply enter
'book 2415 march 21 2 adults 1 child'
and in response you will get the URL like this
https://www.cleartrip.com/trains/itinerary/1de893a0f5ac012baa5c001a4bdf3d6a/info
which takes you to the ClearTrip website where you give the travelers' details, your contact info and can make the payment for the ticket.

Since chat clients are ubiquitous and everyone is using them all the time, this is a nice attempt to reach out to the people and make the process of searching trains easier.The general format for all the actions that can be performed using this bot is given below:

1. Search trains between two stations
   <source city> <destination city> <date> <class>
   
   
2. Search trains for the return journey
   return
   
   
3. Check availability in a train
   avail <train number>
   
   
4. Book train tickets
   book <train number> <date> <passenger details>
   

Though in its initial stages, this utility serves as an excellent way to search for trains...and that too really FAST! Happy Searching :)

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