Care to sleep in a pod? Head to the Mumbai Central railway station

A pod with a cosy bed, a television set, a small locker, an adjustable air conditioner, air filter vents and more. For weary travellers, these are the cool, new, futuristic retiring rooms now available at the Mumbai Central railway station.

Developed by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), these were inaugurated by Minister of State for Railways Raosaheb Danve on Wednesday.

The sleep pods also come with reading lights, interior light, mobile charging, smoke detectors, do-not-disturb indicators and, of course, a mirror. And, each pod room will provide free Wi-Fi, luggage room, toiletries, shower rooms as well as washrooms in common areas.

An IRCTC official said it would soon be setting up more such “pod hotels” with the first few coming up at railway stations in metros. For the ones in Mumbai, eight bookings have been received so far. The pods can be booked through the IRCTC mobile app.

This new concept in hospitality services has been ent­rusted to Urban Pod Hotels on a contractual basis — they were the first to bring the concept, which was pioneered in Japan, to India. It features many small, bed-sized rooms known as capsules.

A pod can be rented for around Rs 999 per person for 12 hours and the tariff can go up to Rs 1,999 per person for 24 hours. The facility at the Mumbai railway station offers a total inventory of 48 pods in three categories: Classic Pods, Ladies Only, Private Pods, and one for the differently abled. There are an additional four family pods that allow for four members per pod.

There are common washrooms for each of the pods. According to an IRCTC official, a call is yet to be taken on the maximum duration for which a pod can be booked by an occupant in one go.

“The concept will best suit frequent travellers, backpackers, single travellers, corporate executives and study groups among others,” a rail ministry statement said.

IRCTC had awarded the contract of these pod hotels through an open tender process to set up, operate and manage the rooms for nine years, extendable by three years. The facility is located on the first floor of the station building at Mumbai Central and is spread over an area of approximately 3,000 sq ft.

Pod hotels provide affordable, basic overnight accommodation for guests who do not require or who cannot afford larger, more expensive rooms. As the rail ministry says, the beauty of the space is the absence of excess.