Rail Passengers, Alert! Tatkal Ticket Rules Are Changing from July 15 — Are You Ready?
New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): Indian Railways has taken a tough stand on ongoing malpractice in Tatkal ticket bookings by announcing sweeping changes to the system. These new rules will be enforced starting July 15, 2025, and will apply not just to online bookings, but also to bookings made at railway counters and through authorised agents.
As per the new system, when booking a Tatkal ticket at a railway counter, an OTP (One-Time Password) will be sent to the passenger’s registered mobile number. The booking will only be completed once this OTP is entered into the system.
For railway agents, access to Tatkal bookings has been delayed by 30 minutes. For example, while Tatkal bookings for AC classes open at 10:00 AM, agents will be able to start booking only from 10:30 AM. Similarly, for non-AC classes, which open at 11:00 AM, agents can begin bookings from 11:30 AM onwards.
In a major move to curb ticket manipulation, Aadhaar authentication has now been made mandatory for all online Tatkal bookings through the IRCTC platform.
The goal of these reforms is to eliminate malpractices and the involvement of middlemen and touts in the Tatkal booking process. Indian Railways hopes these new measures will ensure transparency, fairness, and better passenger experience. Passengers are advised to thoroughly understand the new rules before booking tickets after July 15.