GOOD NEWS! Indian Railways cut down advance ticket booking period to 60 days from 120 days

Starting November 1, 2024, the Indian Railway's advance reservation period will be reduced from 120 to 60 days. Existing 120-day bookings will remain valid, but new bookings will adhere to the 60-day period. Some exceptions apply, such as certain express trains and bookings for foreign tourists.

The advance railway reservation period has been shortened from 120 days to 60 days, according to the Railway Ministry, and the change will take effect on November 1. The Ministry said in a notification dated October 16 that "it has been decided that w.c.f. 01.11.2024, the existing time limit for advance reservations by trains will be reduced from 120 days to 60 days." 

This new diktat will be applicable from November 1 onwards so bookings can be made under the 120-day Advance Reservation Period (ARP) till then. Existing bookings under the earlier ARP will remain intact as well. This reverses a decision taken in March 2015 to increase the window of booking.

What did the latest notification say?

• The ARP will be 60 days (excluding the day of joumey) as of November 1, 2024, and reservations will be made in accordance with this change. However, all reservations made up until October 31, 2024, under the 120-day ARP will still be valid.
• Cancellations of the booking made beyond the ARP of 60 days will, however, be permitted.
• Certain daytime express trains, such as the Taj Express, Gomti Express, etc., which currently have shorter advance reservation deadlines, would not be affected.
• There will also be no change in the case of limit of 365 days for Foreign Tourists.

"All reservations made during the 120-day Advance Reservation Period (ARP) through October 31, 2024, will remain valid," stated Sanjay Manocha, the Railway Board's Director (Passenger Marketing). However, reservations made after the 60-day ARP period may be canceled. The Taj Express, Gomti Express, and other daytime express trains, which now have a reduced advance reservation requirement, will not be affected. Furthermore, international visitors will continue to be subject to the 365-day restriction.

This goal to ferry more passengers’ hinges on running more trains and also using artificial intelligence (AI) to better systems and processes. According to Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Al model used for checking the occupancy of trains had led to over 30% increase in the rate of confirmed tickets.