Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), the authorised entity by Indian Railways to book train tickets online, also offers bookings of Tatkal train tickets on its website irctc.co.in. Tatkal train ticket booking service of Indian Railways allows passengers to travel on an urgent basis by paying a premium to the normal train ticket fares. The IRCTC Tatkal train ticket booking service opens at 10:00 am every day for air-conditioned (AC) class and at 11:00 am for non-AC class reservations, according to the Indian Railways' website - Indianrail.gov.in. (Also Read: IRCTC Buddhist Circuit Special Train To Start From October 19, Details Here)
Tatkal train tickets booking: Here are details of rules, charges, timings for bookings and cancellation of Tatkal train tickets:
Tatkal train ticket booking charges have been fixed as a percentage of fare at 10 per cent of basic fare for second class and 30 per cent of basic fare for all other classes. (Also Read: Here Are The Service Charges Levied By IRCTC For Ticket Bookings)
Tatkal train ticket booking charges:
Source: Indian Railways
Here are the rules for booking and cancellation of Tatkal train tickets:
- Tatkal tickets are issued for actual distance of travel, instead of end-to-end, subject to the distance restriction applicable to the train. The same Tatkal berth/seat may be booked in multiple legs till preparation of charts. At the time of preparation of charts, Indian Railways said on its website https://www.indianrail.gov.in.
- At the time of Tatkal train ticket booking individual does not need to furnish an identity proof. However, while travelling a passenger needs to produce proof of identity that can be Aadhaar card, driving license, PAN card, passport etc.
- Tatkal train ticket booking facility is available for all express and mail trains and is also available for booking executive class of Shatabadi Express trains, according to Indian Railways.
- At the time of preparation of charts, unutilized portion may be released to the General RAC/waiting list passengers, Indian Railways mentioned on its website.
- Indian Railways authorized ticket agents and web agents of IRCTC are restricted from the booking Tatkal tickets between 10:00 am and 12:00 pm, according to Indian Railways.
- No refund is granted on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal train ticket booking. However, if the train is to run on a diverted route and passenger is not willing to travel or if the train is delayed by more than three hours, cancellation is allowed by Indian Railways.
- Maximum of four passengers can be booked on one PNR for Tatkal ticket unlike six passengers on one PNR for normal ticket, Indian Railways said.