New Tatkal rules from July 1: Aadhaar authentication must for booking; agents locked out for half an hour
Aadhaar and OTP authentication to become must from July 1 for booking Tatkal tickets for railways says government of India
By Kedar Nadella
New Delhi: New Tatkal rules from July 1 as Aadhaar authentication must for booking
Hyderabad: The Indian Railways on Wednesday announced some key modifications in the Tatkal ticket booking system, such as mandatory Aadhaar authentication for online Tatkal bookings and OTP authentication at PRS counters and for agents and booking time restrictions for agents. Further, Aadhaar-based OTP authentication will become mandatory for Tatkal bookings made online starting July 15.
The Indian Railways said that the move is aimed to ensure fair and transparent access to Tatkal tickets and to safeguard the interests of genuine passengers, Indian Railways has announced. These changes are aimed at enhancing user authentication and reducing misuse of the scheme.
The new provisions are as follows:
Aadhaar Authentication for Online Tatkal Bookings: Effective July 1, Tatkal tickets booked through IRCTCās official website and mobile app will be available only to users authenticated with Aadhaar.
System-based OTP authentication at PRS counters and agents: Tatkal tickets booked at computerised Passenger Reservation System (PRS) counters and through authorised agents will require OTP authentication sent to the mobile number provided by the user at the time of booking. This provision will also come into effect from July 15.
Booking time restriction for authorised agents: To prevent bulk bookings during the critical opening period, authorised ticketing agents of Indian Railways will not be permitted to book opening-day Tatkal tickets during the first 30 minutes of the booking window.
For AC classes, this restriction applies from 10 am to 10:30 am, and for non-AC classes, from 11 am to 11:30 am.
These changes are being implemented to improve transparency in Tatkal bookings and to ensure that the benefits of the scheme reach genuine end users, the government said. The changes were announced ahead of their release on June 4 by Ashwini Vaishnaw, minister for railways, through his social media.
CRIS and IRCTC have been instructed to make necessary system modifications and inform all Zonal Railways and concerned departments accordingly.
The Ministry of Railways urges all passengers to take note of these changes and encourages everyone to ensure Aadhaar linkage with their IRCTC user profiles to avoid inconvenience.
The majority say online booking fails, 3 in 10 prefer agents: Survey
As per a LocalCircles survey, 7 in 10 persons who had difficulty in booking Tatkal tickets online in the last 12 months say all tickets became unavailable within one minute of booking opening, and they got waitlisted.
Many have taken to social media, tagging Indian Railways, to express their distress in booking Tatkal tickets. The complaints include the railways site not opening at 10 am, payments being completed without tickets being issued and the website/app crashing due to the visitor load, among others.
What is the Tatkal system?
For those waitlisted for a railway journey or wanting to travel urgently on a fully booked train, Tatkal tickets can be a good opportunity to get a confirmed ticket. It allows travellers a window to book tickets on short notice, usually a day before the travel. Tatkal booking opens at 10 am for AC classes and 11 am for non-AC classes. No refund is provided for cancelled or confirmed Tatkal tickets.
The tatkal system was introduced in 1997, and according to the railways, its purpose was to provide a last-minute booking interval without having to deal with agents.
The results are an indicator that, even in this digital age, because of either the system deficiencies or unknown forces at the ticketing backend that travel agents have access to, people believe that they must go through a travel agent to secure a Tatkal booking.
