Reservation system in Indian Railway

RESERVATION IN INDIAN RAILWAY

Passengers who wish to travel in Indian Railway trains must reserve their seat in advance for all classes of travel except for General/Unreserved coaches. The railway reservation facility allows traveling in the train and travel class of your choice with a berth/seat allotted against your name. Here’s everything you must know about railway reservation in India.

Railway Reservation through PRS Counters

Every major railway station in India has a reservation office attached to it. Many metro cities may also have satellite reservation offices located in other parts of the city. To book tickets through PRS counters, you must fill up a reservation form with your personal and journey details. Based on the availability of tickets, the ticketing staff at the counter will issue the ticket. Indian Railways reservation counters are open from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm (Monday to Saturday) and 8:00 am to 2:00 pm on Sundays.

Railway Reservation Online through IRCTC

Tickets can also be reserved online through IRCTC, the official online ticketing partner of Indian Railways. Online train ticket reservation can be done through IRCTC Next Generation e-Ticketing System (official website) and IRCTC Rail Connect (official app). The ticket issued is called an e-Ticket or Electronic Reservation Slip (ERS). You must register with IRCTC to enjoy the reservation services which are available all through the day except from 11:45 pm to 12:20 am (IST), every night.

Tatkal and Premium Tatkal Ticket Reservation

Tatkal is a ticket reservation scheme that allows passengers to book tickets one day before the date of journey by paying additional charges. Premium Tatkal (PT) reservation is a variant of Tatkal, but it follows a dynamic pricing system where tickets prices may vary based on demand. Tatkal tickets can be booked online and at PRS counters while PT tickets can only be booked online. Tatkal reservation starts from 10:00 am onwards for AC classes and 11:00 am onwards for non-AC classes. Learn more about Tatkal ticket reservation

Advance Reservation Period (ARP)

For General Quota bookings, the ARP is 120 days prior to the date of journey excluding the date of journey. For Tatkal and Premium Tatkal reservation, the ARP is one day before the date of journey excluding the date of journey. A few trains, such as the mountain trains and special trains, have ARPs lesser than 120 days. Foreign travelers and NRIs can book tickets under the Foreign Tourist Quota 365 days prior to the journey.

Reserved Classes of Travel

Reservation is allowed for all classes of travel except the General or Unreserved class.  The reserved travel classes include AC First Class, AC 2 Tier, AC 3 Tier, AC Chair Car, Executive Chair Car, Sleeper, First Class, and Second Seating. A confirmed train reservation will always contain a seat number and coach number for all classes except the 1 AC class. For 1 AC bookings, the seats will be allotted only when the chart is prepared. To know more about Indian Railways travel classes, click here. 

Railway Reservation Rules

• For General Quota reservation, you can book 6 passengers on a ticket. For Tatkal reservation, only 4 passengers per ticket are allowed.
• IRCTC users can book only 6 tickets per ID in a month. Users who have completed the Aadhaar verification of their accounts can book 12 tickets per ID in a month.
• Reservation is allowed until the first chart is prepared, which is usually 4 hours prior to the scheduled departure of the train.
• Current reservation is allowed for some trains where you can book vacant seats after the first chart preparation.

Abbreviations Used in Railway Reservation

In railway reservation, certain abbreviations are used to indicate the status of your booking. These include:

CNF (Confirmed): This means you have a confirmed reservation and a seat/berth has been allotted exclusively to you.

RAC (Reservation against Cancellation): This means you have a berth, but you will be sharing it with another passenger. When passengers with confirmed reservation cancel their tickets, RAC tickets get the highest priority. If the status of your RAC ticket remains the same even after the chart preparation, you can board the train.

GNWL (General Waitlist): This means you don’t have a confirmed berth/seat. You will be allotted a confirmed berth/seat based on cancellations. General Waitlist is the most common waitlist type and typically, passengers who board the train from the originating station or a station that is close to the originating station are included in this list. GNWL has the highest chances of confirmation.

CKWL/TQWL (Tatkal Waitlist): This means you have booked your tickets under the Tatkal quota and you don’t have a confirmed berth/seat. During the chart preparation, GNWL is given priority over CKWL. However, CKWL tickets get confirmed directly without going through the RAC phase.

RLWL (Remote Location Waitlist): Typically, passengers boarding from intermediate stations are included in this waitlist type. Chances of confirmation are less for RLWL as compared to GNWL.

PQWL (Pooled Quota Waitlist): This is a kind of Waitlist that is shared by many small railways stations en route. The entire run has only one PQWL which typically operates only from the station where the train originates. PQWL tickets are issued when you are boarding and de-boarding at two intermediate stations. The chances of confirmation are relatively less for PQWL tickets.

RSWL (Roadside Waitlist): This is a kind of waitlist typically issued to passengers who board the trains from the station of origin to a roadside station en route. The chances of confirmation are relatively less for RSWL tickets.

RLGN (Remote Location General Waiting List): This refers to the waitlisted tickets booked by passengers under the RLWL quota. In other words, once the booking is done, RLWL becomes RLGN.

RQWL (Request Waitlist): Tickets under this waitlist type are usually issued to passengers who travel from an intermediate station and to an intermediate station, and when their booking is not covered by any other waitlist quotas like GNWL, PQWL, etc.

REGRET: The upper limit allowed for reservation has been reached. You will not be allowed to book tickets even on the waitlist.