From AI system analysis to ticket cancellations: All you need to know about the new Indian Railways train ticket reservation rules

If you're looking to book a train ticket in advance, it’s essential to know about the new rules from Indian Railways that took effect on November 1, 2024. These updates change the way advance ticket bookings work.

According to the updated guidelines, passengers can now book their train tickets 60 days before their journey, instead of the previous 120-day period. This change will not affect any tickets that were booked before this date.

The new rule aims to help passengers deal with issues like train cancellations that often happen when tickets are booked far in advance.

It seeks to create a more efficient booking system by allowing for more spontaneous travel and better planning while also reducing cancellations. Moreover, it may help reduce ticket touting, which took advantage of the longer booking window.

Under the new system, the Advance Reservation Period (ARP) will be 60 days, not including the day of travel.

However, any bookings made before October 31, 2024, under the old 120-day rule will still be valid.

New booking rules

• Indian Railways has shortened its advance reservation period to 60 days as of November 1, 2024. This replaces the earlier 120-day advance booking window. Reservations made before October 31, 2024, will remain valid.
• Passengers with tickets booked beyond the new 60-day limit can still cancel their tickets, and the usual cancellation processes will apply.
• The existing booking rules for certain express trains, like the "Taj Express" and "Gomti Express," will stay the same. The special rule allowing foreign tourists to book tickets up to 365 days in advance will also remain unchanged.

Since 1981, the Advance Reservation Period has been updated 12 times. The booking window was previously set to 30 days from September 1995 to February 1998, and it was extended to 120 days in April 2015 to allow for longer advance bookings.

Indian Railways is improving its technology by using artificial intelligence to enhance seat allocation.

The AI system analyses passenger data and predicts available seats after reservation charts are created, which happens four hours before departure. This automated approach helps distribute seats more effectively to those on the waitlist.

(With inputs from TOI)