IRCTC has made a major change in the rules of Tatkal ticket booking. Now it may be difficult to book Tatkal tickets without Aadhaar and OTP verification. Know what is the new rule, why linking Aadhaar is necessary and what effect it will have on passengers.
Tatkal tickets are often the last hope for crores of passengers traveling by train. But many times, as soon as ticket booking starts, the seats get filled within a few seconds and common passengers remain disappointed. To overcome this problem, Railways and IRCTC have made major changes in the Tatkal ticket booking process.
The aim of the new rule is to stop fake bookings, bots and arbitrariness of agents, so that tickets can reach genuine passengers. Now, to book Tatkal tickets, passengers may have to go through an Aadhaar based verification process. Railways believes that this will make the ticket booking system more transparent and secure.
What is the new rule of Railways?
According to the new rule, during Tatkal ticket booking, OTP will be sent to the mobile number linked to Aadhaar. The ticket booking process will proceed only after the OTP verification is completed. In simple words, merely having an IRCTC account will not be enough. The passenger will have to verify his account information through Aadhaar and the mobile number linked to it. This will reduce the possibility of a person booking tickets by creating multiple fake IDs.
Why is Aadhaar verification necessary?
For the past several years, passengers have been complaining that seats get sold out quickly as soon as Tatkal ticket booking starts. Experts believe that automated software, bots and some agent networks play a big role behind this. Railways aims to curb such practices so that genuine passengers have a better chance of getting tickets. Aadhaar based OTP verification can help in curbing fake accounts and suspicious booking activities.
Do these important things before booking tickets
To avoid any problem during Tatkal ticket booking, passengers should complete some important preparations in advance.
- Link your IRCTC account with Aadhaar.
- Make sure the mobile number is linked to Aadhaar.
- Mobile number should be active and recharged.
- The number receiving OTP should be active.
Railways hopes that this change will make the Tatkal ticket booking system more fair and the benefit of ticket availability will be passed on to genuine passengers. This arrangement can be a relief for lakhs of passengers during the festival and holiday season.