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Currently handles about 1.25 million API calls daily across 140+ APIs with 600+ resources.
By masking backend complexities, the platform paves the way for new business models and third-party app development.
Connects Indian Railways to a wide range of critical systems, from government platforms to freight and passenger operations.
Indian Railways (IR) is a government entity operating India’s national railway system. As the world’s fourth-largest rail network, IR runs about 11,000 trains daily, including 7,000 passenger trains. Established in 1986, the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) is the IT arm responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining IR’s critical information systems. It plays a pivotal role in ensuring efficient and reliable operations — from ticketing and freight management to network optimization and passenger services.
CRIS needed a secure, controlled method for sharing data with third-party developers. With approximately 30 applications requiring data interchange, over 1,000 identified interchange needs, and a potential for 100 million daily API calls, the organization sought to establish an enterprise-level API gateway and management infrastructure.
Launched on August 15, 2021, Project Pravah aimed to create a seamless, secure, and controlled flow of information between IR and its partners. It currently handles 1.25 million API calls daily across 140+ APIs with 600+ resources. Nineteen tenant groups and 45+ consumers utilize the platform for both B2B and B2C integrations. WSO2 API Manager serves as the foundation for Pravah, providing a robust feature set, cloud native capabilities, and support for modern protocols. As the implementation partner, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) played a pivotal role to install, configure, and onboard APIs to the WSO2 platform, train CRIS professionals, conduct functional and performance testing, and provide post-implementation support.
Principal Project Engineer
Centre for Railway Information Systems
Mature IR applications held vast data, a valuable asset for partners, consumers, and developers. A key challenge was securely exposing this data via APIs. Each application used its own services and infrastructure, creating inconsistencies. Native apps faced security risks due to endpoint vulnerabilities. Data scraping of public-facing apps caused unpredictable load spikes. To foster new business models, applications needed a secure, controlled data-sharing platform. Some key considerations included the following:
CRIS had to design, architect, implement, and maintain a standards-based, configurable, highly available API gateway and management solution on the organization’s private cloud. The solution had to:
The solution also had to meet the following technical requirements.
After a thorough evaluation process, CRIS selected WSO2 API Manager as the preferred solution due to its technical capabilities, cost-effectiveness, and open source nature. CRIS adopted a phased approach to API management, focusing initially on core functionalities. This strategy allowed for gradual expansion as needs evolved. WSO2 offers comprehensive API management, covering development, deployment, security, analytics, and more. For CRIS, the implementation included:
IR’s enterprise architecture adheres to the government-mandated India Enterprise Architecture (IndEA), which is based on The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF®). IndEA promotes a holistic view of government as an interconnected enterprise. Pravah aligns with IndEA and leverages the Integration Reference Model (IRM) to facilitate seamless data exchange within the ecosystem. The solution is structured into management, data, control, and analytical layers based on WSO2 API Manager's component distribution.
In Phase I of the project, CRIS aimed to expose a limited number of APIs from four project groups: Passenger Reservation System (PRS), National Train Enquiry Systems (NTES), Freight Operations Information System (FOIS), and E-Procurement System (EPS). WSO2 API Manager helped to achieve these goals on time.
A Robust API Platform: Project Pravah has become a cornerstone for IR's data sharing, handling a substantial volume of 1.25 million API calls daily across 140+ APIs and 600+ resources. The platform serves 19 tenant groups and 45+ consumers, facilitating both B2B and B2C integrations. This success demonstrates Pravah's effectiveness in providing a secure and controlled environment for information exchange.
Streamlined Data Exchange: Pravah created a standardized interface that simplified information exchange for IR, securing, controlling, and managing data flow while masking backend complexities. This unified platform fostered collaboration with logistics and travel partners, encouraging innovative business models and third-party app development.
Strong Integrations: Pravah has also been key to integrate with many complex systems — including the National e-Governance Division (NeGD) and Unified Mobile Application for New-Age Governance (UMANG) apps; the IRCTC 139 IVRS and call center; IRCTC eCatering; freight data access systems for ADIL, IOCL, UTCL, SAIL, and HINDLCO; loco integration with the Control Office Application (COA) (Remlots); and various mobile apps.
For a deeper dive into Pravah, you can also refer to a detailed technical case study on the Open Group Library.
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