``We have started talks with travel agencies and corporate houses for certain agreements which will give them discounts and other facilities, provided they can assure a certain amount of business. We hope it will bring in substantially more passengers,'' Ghorai said.

Indian Airlines has opened up dialogue with foreign airliners too, in order to promote traffic to and from the eastern region.

``We want to enter into an inter-line partnership for the development of the market through co-promotion exercises. Moreover, we want all their foreign passengers to travel in Indian Airlines for their domestic movements,'' theregional director added.

Faced by the challenge from private operators, Indian Airlines is refurbishing the cabins of the Airbus A-300 and Boeing 737 fleet. The process is expected to be complete by June this year for Airbus A-300s and September 1999 for the Boeing 737 aircrafts.

The eastern office of IA is also introducing a `Walk-in Bonanza' for its passengers travelling out of Calcutta on important routes. Under the scheme, passengers need not make prior reservation but can walk straight into the IA check-in counters, get a ticket immediately and fly. Passengers who cannot be given a seat will be offered a free one-way ticket, after payment of theapplicable taxes, for the same sector and class of travel.

S Burman, officiating general manager (commercial) said this scheme is being introduced following the success of the metro shuttle between Delhi and Mumbai started during the summer. ``The Calcutta scheme will be experimentedon for three months, after its launch on May 20,'' he said.

Ghorai saidwith the scheme already introduced in the Delhi-Mumbai route, IA has increased its marketshare by eight to nine per cent. ``In 1998-99 we had a market share of 60.5 per cent. It is expected go up sharply," he said.IA has already commenced trial runs of a new departure control system, Burman said, which will offer through check-in and return sector check-in as well as seat-assignment at the time of booking for the passenger. ``This system will avoid the need for baggage identification through gate control with baggage matching. The system will be operation soon,'' Burman disclosed.On-line reservation is another area where Indian Airlines is concentrating on increasing its business. Ghorai said that the trial run is on currently, at Mumbai and Delhi and it is likely to be implemented by the end of 1999.