From October 1, 2025, Indian Railways will roll out a new booking rule that makes Aadhaar verification mandatory for passengers looking to reserve general train tickets on the IRCTC website or app within the first 15 minutes of bookings opening. The move is designed to give priority access to genuine passengers and discourage misuse of the reservation system by unauthorised individuals.
What Will Change from October 1?
- Passengers booking reserved general tickets online during the initial 15 minutes of opening will need to authenticate their Aadhaar details.
- This change only applies to bookings through the IRCTC website and mobile application.
- The existing system for booking tickets at PRS counters will remain exactly the same.
- Ticketing agents of Indian Railways will still face the current restriction of waiting 10 minutes before they can start booking reserved tickets on the opening day.
Aadhaar Linked Tatkal Ticketing Already in Place
This new step follows a similar move introduced a few months earlier. Since July 1, 2025, Aadhaar authentication has already been made compulsory for booking Tatkal tickets via IRCTC. Travelers under the Tatkal scheme must verify their Aadhaar details at the time of booking.
The government has also imposed restrictions on authorised ticketing agents for Tatkal tickets. Agents are not allowed to book tickets during the crucial opening period, which is 10:00 am to 10:30 am for AC classes and 11:00 am to 11:30 am for non-AC classes.
With these measures, Indian Railways aims to bring more transparency, curb misuse by touts, and ensure that genuine passengers get a fair chance at booking tickets during peak demand.
