Candidates who have had trouble appearing for their Indian Railways recruitment exams in far-off locations are in for some good news. The Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) in India will be using the power of Google Maps to ensure that future candidates are allotted exam centres nearest to them.
According to a report by The Hindu, an official from the Indian Railways confirmed that most candidates would be allotted a test centre within 300 km of their pin code. However, these would be specific to parts of the country and the number of test centres available in the region. The RRB-NTPC has also stated that women candidates will be allotted centres within a 400 km radius of their pin code.
The RRB has said that the system will be using Google Maps to match the pin code of the applicant and that of the test centre. Additionally, it will take into account the distance to the test centres when travelling either by train or road.
Almost 60,000 candidates are expected to appear for the recruitment exam that will be held in August at 90 test centres across the country. The exam will aim to fill in 7,026 vacancies in the Indian Railways.
Technology is helpful again
This is again proof that technology can improve and simplify many systems across industries. Google Maps has also seen additional features launched that will help users in India. For example, you will be able to see the toll amount payable when on a specific route. Additionally, you can also edit the toll information if you find any error in it.
With the use of Google’s service, the Indian Railways is helping to resolve an issue that has been repeated by candidates in the past. Many have taken to social media to voice their concern about travelling even thousands of kilometres away to appear for their exams. And that is a huge improvement that we could expect to see going forward.
However, it would be great if the government would use more technologies like AI and ML in the ticketing systems as well. Often at times, it can be seen that many senior citizen travellers are allotted upper berth seats. Using AI and ML, the lower berth seats could be allotted to senior citizens on a priority basis. Also, since the chart isn’t prepared until hours before the journey, it could be easier to realign seats among other passengers.
