All You Need To Know About Latest IRCTC Ticket-Booking Rules

In a bid to provide relief to passengers, Indian Railways recently decided to prepare the second reservation charts 30 minutes before the scheduled departure of trains from stations. Earlier, it was modified to two hours due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to the established pre-COVID-19 period instructions, the first reservation chart was prepared at least four hours before the scheduled departure of trains. Thereafter, the available accommodation could be booked across the passenger reservation system (PRS) counters as well as through the internet on a first-come-first-serve basis till the preparation of second reservation charts.

In a statement, Indian Railways said that the second reservation charts were prepared between 30 minutes to five minutes before the scheduled/rescheduled time of departure of trains. The cancellation of already booked tickets was also permitted during this period as per the provisions of the refund rules.

The decision to prepare the second reservation chart at least 30 minutes before the train's departure was taken as per the request of the zonal railways for ensuring the convenience of passengers. The facility of ticket booking, through PRS ticket counters and online, is available for passengers accordingly, before the preparation of the second chart. The Railway Ministry noted that to restore the new provision with effect from October 10, 2020, necessary modifications were issued to Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS) in the software. A Railway Ministry official said that the IRCTC e-ticket booking rules remain the same, however, passengers should arrive at the station at least one-two hours before the train's departure.

How To Book IRCTC E-Ticket

Log on to irctc.co.in and register to create your IRCTC account.

Fill in the source and destination, select the journey date, class of coach, and click on Find Trains option.

Choose the train from the list, along with the class of travel.

Click on the Check Availability option and fare of the journey.

If seats are available, proceed to Book Ticket.

Click on Book Now option, fill in the required details such as name, age, gender, and berth preference.

If the confirmed berths are allotted, the booking option will be allotted.

Scroll down and enter phone number and captcha code. Click on the Continue Booking option.

At the payment options page, choose the preferred option for payment, i.e., credit card, debit card, or others.

After the payment is done, the ticket will be booked and the user will receive the confirmation along with your ticket on your registered phone number and email ID.