NEW DELHI: In a significant policy shift aimed at improving passenger convenience, Indian Railways will now prepare reservation charts eight hours before a train’s scheduled departure, instead of the current four hours. For trains departing before 2 PM, the reservation chart will be finalized by 9 PM the previous evening.
The Railway Board proposed the change last week, and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has directed its phased implementation to avoid disruptions. A rollout plan is expected soon.
The Ministry of Railways said the current four-hour window creates uncertainty for waitlisted passengers. The revised timeline will provide early clarity on ticket status, helping passengers—especially those traveling from remote areas or city outskirts—make timely alternate arrangements if their tickets remain unconfirmed.
In another major move, the Railways will completely revamp its Passenger Reservation System (PRS) by December. The new system will handle over 1.5 lakh ticket bookings per minute—nearly five times the current capacity of 32,000—and support over 40 lakh ticket inquiries per minute, up from the current 4 lakh.
The upgraded PRS will feature a multilingual, user-friendly interface and new functionalities such as seat selection and a fare calendar. The project is being developed by the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) and was reviewed in a high-level meeting chaired by Minister Vaishnaw last week.
Starting July 1, IRCTC will also implement mandatory user authentication for booking Tatkal tickets via its website and mobile app, as part of broader efforts to improve security and transparency.
