Railway Booking in India
Railways in India are one of the safest, easiest and economical modes of travelling. Train travel requires reserving the tickets prior to the journey. Owing to an increase in the number of people opting for train travel, different booking avenues have been established. Listed below are the modes of booking a train ticket:
Railway Stations
Reservations for train travels can be made at booking centres at various railway stations.
Online Booking
The advancements in technology have made booking tickets easier. IRCTC is the official railway reservation website hosted by the Indian government. Alternatively, tickets can be booked and train schedule can be checked via many travel portals such as MakeMyTrip.com, Cleartrip.com and Yatra.com.
For long distance trips, bookings are open 90 days ahead of train departure. However, for short distance, bookings will be open only 30 days in advance. Here the choice can be made between two types of tickets: i-tickets and e-tickets. The ticket will be delivered via courier to the provided address in i-ticket and booking has to be done at least two days in advance to the train departure. Unlike i-ticket, e-ticket gives the privilege of booking until the last minute. Passengers have to carry a copy of e-ticket and an authorized ID proof during the journey.
Once the booking is done, based on the Indian railway seat availability, tickets can have following type of status:
Confirmed – The seat is confirmed and allotted.
Reserved Against Cancellation (RAC) – Failure to obtain a confirmed seat may result in RAC. Most of the trains reserve 15 tickets for RAC passengers in each coach. An RAC ticket assures a person a seat but not a berth. However, if there are any cancellations, on journey officers can allot a berth to an RAC ticket traveler based on the order of booking.
Waiting List – If all the seats on all trains are booked, then a waiting list status is prompted on the ticket. It can be elevated to RAC or confirmed status anytime before departure based on cancellations. One cannot travel with a ticket on the waiting list.
Unreserved – These tickets do not assure a seat, but allows train travel. They can be booked three days in advance and the passenger can travel in any general compartment.
Tatkal System
The Tatkal system was introduced to facilitate short notice or emergency train travel. Tickets can be booked 72 hours before the departure with a slight increase in the fare. There is no refund on cancellation or an option for name change in a ticket booked under Tatkal.
For more information about IRCTC Online Booking Services, Please visit our website for checking Indian Railway Seat Availability at http://www.mustseeindia.com
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