Wait-listed passengers with e-tickets can now board train, get confirmed berth

New Delhi: Railway passengers holding wait-listed e-tickets can now breathe a sigh of relief as the Supreme court has recently ruled that they may be allowed to board the train in-case passengers holding confirmed berths do not take the train journey.

The e-ticket holders can wait for their chance of getting a confirmed birth if the passengers with confirmed tickets don't turn up.

The SC order comes following appeal filed by the Railways against a judgment that directed the Rail ministry to not do discrimination between wait-listed passengers holding physical ticket and those holding e-tickets.

Erstwhile, only physical ticket holders of the wait-listed category were allowed to board the train and wait for their turn for confirmed birth on 'no-show' of confirmed ticket holders.

It may be recalled that a refurbished IRCTC website went live last week along with a host of passenger friendly services and facilities.

Passengers can now know the probability of confirmation of wait-listed tickets, based on a new algorithm developed by the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS). According to the new feature of wait-list prediction, one can predict the chances of a wait-listed or an RAC ticket getting confirmed on the basis of booking trends. The algorithm will take into account last 13 years' data to arrive at a "robust, workable model".

A user need not even log in to the new website to enquire or search for trains and check on availability of seats, while the older version only allowed access to the registered users.

While booking tickets, separate cards for each passenger have been provided to fill in their details. Pre-filled particulars will ensure a quick booking experience. The user can manage the payment options by marking six banks as preferred banks under the 'My Profile' section.

The users can also perform multiple activities like cancellation, printing, request for an SMS, selection of an alternative train by exercising the "Vikalp" option and changing the boarding point, if required.

Nearly 13 lakh tickets are booked on the IRCTC website every day against a reserved accommodation of 10.5 lakh berths.

With PTI Inputs