The number of transactions being handled by the IT systems on the Indian Railways today speaks volumes of their quality and capabilities. The Indian Railways run about 11000 trains each day, freight and passenger included.

In the initial years, the late eighties and early nineties, the focus was on the two major applications PRS and FOIS. A significant moment in the history of CRIS was when both these projects became completely in-house projects. The organisation gained tremendous confidence as a result of this responsibility and the success of these projects (like the new reservation logic developed within CONCERT) totally changed the perception of what CRIS could do. The demands and expectations of Railways’ customers rose significantly by the beginning of the twenty-first century, as it became evident that the potential for effective use of IT usage was huge. Suddenly the number of projects being sanctioned and assigned to CRIS for execution jumped and pilot projects began to be implemented. By this time CRIS had grown well beyond what had been initially envisaged. Cutting edge IT solutions were explored and developed. The success of the pilot projects led to a certain impatience to see these implemented all over the country. For speedy implementation, CRIS brought in more resources and domain knowledge experts to participate in this quiet revolution.

The visionary approach of the Ministry of Railways has led to a happy situation where most critical activities of core Railway operations are managed through IT-enabled systems. However, IT is a dynamic area. Customers expect greater convenience as more and more intelligent devices penetrate every section of society. This requires an energetic and dynamic IT organization that can constantly stay abreast and transform state-of-the-art technologies into effective solutions for customers. CRIS is well-poised to take on this role and further transform the working of the Railways. Information gathering and basic analysis is computer assisted. Decision support elements are also being provided. The key challenge today for the Railways lies in this area, in creating such systems that enable a complete transformation of key organizational processes. It is an appropriate time for the Indian Railways and CRIS to develop a long term vision for sustained IT development, as IT applications are now at the very heart of the Railway business. Today, CRIS finds itself on the threshold of a new era of IT-driven organizational transformation, coupled with the use of IT to provide far quicker and more convenient services to the customers of the Indian Railways. These goals only make the organization more resolute in its efforts to produce and manage high-quality information systems for the Indian Railways.