Nagpur: In a significant change to its ticketing system, Indian Railways will now inform passengers about the confirmation status of their waitlisted tickets 24 hours before the journey, instead of the previous 4-hour window.
Railways has upgraded its Passenger Reservation System (PRS) to enable this early confirmation update. This means waitlisted passengers will now know a day in advance whether their ticket is confirmed or not.
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10 June 2025
What are the benefits?
• More time to plan alternate travel in case the ticket remains unconfirmed
• Avoid last-minute confusion and stress
• Reduces dependency on agents and touts
When will it begin?
According to Railway Board sources, this new system will be implemented nationwide from July 1, 2025. Initially, it will roll out as a pilot project in select railway zones.
Passengers have welcomed the move, calling it a positive and passenger-friendly step. They say it will make travel planning easier and reduce last-minute anxiety.
This scheme was initially launched as a pilot project on a single train in the Bikaner division on June 6. According to railway sources, the experiment has yielded positive results in the initial four days. This allows passengers to know in advance whether their tickets will be confirmed, enabling them to plan alternative travel arrangements if necessary.
Passenger problems to be resolved
Currently, the chart is prepared at the last minute, causing problems for passengers and leaving the railways with insufficient time to add coaches or take other measures. Furthermore, an average of 21% of passengers cancel their bookings after ticket confirmation, and 4-5% do not travel at all. Preparing the chart a day in advance will allow the railways to better anticipate the actual number of passengers.
Importantly, the existing process for Tatkal (instant) tickets will remain unchanged despite this new system.
