Bulletin India.
It has been decided that effective from 1st November 2024, the time limit for advance reservations by trains will be reduced from 120 days to 60 days (excluding the date of journey), as detailed below:
From 1st November 2024, the Advance Reservation Period (ARP) will be 60 days (excluding the day of journey). Bookings will be processed accordingly. However, all bookings made up to 31st October 2024 under the existing ARP of 120 days will remain valid.
Cancellations for bookings made beyond the 60-day ARP will be permitted.
There will be no changes for certain daythbime express trains such as the Taj Express and Gomti Express, where shorter advance reservation periods are already in place.
The 365-day reservation period for foreign tourists will recaqmain unchanged.
Historical Context
The railway’s advance reservation period has been modified from time to time, ranging from 30 days to 120 days. Based on experience, a 60-day ARP has proven to be the optimal period from a passenger’s perspective.
Benefits of the 60-Day Reservation Period:
The 120-day ARP was too long, leading to high cancellations and wastage of seats or berths due to passengers not turning up for their journeys.
Currently, around 21% of tickets are cancelled, and 4-5% of passengers do not show up.
No-show Issues: In many cases, passengers neither cancel their tickets nor travel, leading to fraudulent activities such as impersonation and illegal financial transactions by railway officials. This can now be mitigated.
- Shorter reservation periods will encourage more bookings from genuine passengers, reducing instances of ticket blocking.
- General class tickets remain unaffected, as they are purchased just before the journey.
- With better demand visibility, thanks to reduced cancellations and no-shows, the railways can plan special trains in advance.
This change is aimed at enhancing the efficiency of the reservation system and improving the overall travel experience for passengers.
