Lok Sabha Question No. 5382 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-03-28
Subject: Bulk Booking in Tatkal
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: RANJANBEN BHATT

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5382 TO BE ANSWERED ON 28.03.2018

## BULK BOOKING IN TATKAL

†5382.  SHRIMATI RANJANBEN BHATT:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether the seats in trains get sold in minutes due to simultaneous booking of tatkal tickets in railway;
- (b)  if  so,  whether  the  Government  has  taken  cognizance  of  the  said situation;
- (c) if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

(SHRI RAJEN GOHAIN)

- (a) to (d) : A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (d) OF UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5382 BY SHRIMATI RANJANBEN BHATT TO BE ANSWERED  IN  LOK  SABHA  ON  28.03.2018  REGARDING  BULK BOOKING IN TATKAL (a) to (d) : On Indian Railways, reserved accommodation including Tatkal accommodation can be booked through computerised Passenger Reservation  System  (PRS)  counters  as  well  as  through  internet  on  first come  first  served  basis.    During  peak  rush  periods/days  when  demand outstrips    the  availability,  reserved  accommodation  especially  in  higher classes  and  on  popular  routes  gets  exhausted  within  short  duration  of opening of reservation.    However,      during  lean  periods,  on  non-popular routes  and  in  lower  classes,  the  accommodation  remains  available  for longer  duration.    The  phenomenon  is  more  relevant  for  Tatkal  where limited  accommodation  is  earmarked.  This  happens  as  the  available limited  accommodation  is  accessed  simultaneously  through  more  than 10,300 counters at 3465 computerised Passenger Reservation Centers as well as through internet. Some instances  of  inconvenience  caused  to  the  passengers  while booking tatkal tickets also come to notice due to transaction failure while booking  or  while  making  the  payment  through  internet.  Transactions failures generally occur due to network problem on the users part or on account of payment gateway. As far as server of Indian Railway Catering and  Tourism  Corporation(IRCTC)  is  concerned,  it  has  the  capacity  of 20000 bookings per minute which is sufficient to handle the present load. However, anticipating more number of tickets booking through internet in future,  5  new  Itanium  Servers  have  been  installed  to  enhance  ticketing capacity. Some instances of unscrupulous elements involved in malpractices in selling of reserved tickets including tatkal tickets are also reported to avoid misuse of Tatkal Scheme there are some inbuilt features in Tatkal scheme which includes provision of not granting refund on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal tickets except in case of certain special circumstances indicated in the scheme, not allowing any modification of Tatkal ticket, etc.  Some  additional  steps  have  also  been  taken  to  facilitate  the passengers and to avoid the misuse, some of which are:-

- i. Staggering of the timings of reservation under Tatkal scheme.
- ii. Disabling authorised agents to book Tatkal tickets during first half an hour of opening of reservation.
- iii. During the journey, one of the passengers booked on that ticket is required  to  produce  any  one  of  the  prescribed  proof  of  identity, failing which all the passengers booked on that ticket are considered as travelling without ticket and charged accordingly.
- iv. Captcha implementation in Registration, Login and Booking page to check fraudulent booking through automation software.
- v. Imposition  of  minimum  time  limit  before  proceeding  for  payment gateway  as  well  as  after  making  payment  while  booking  tickets through internet.
- vi. Making  OTP(one  time  password)  compulsory  for  all  net  Banking Payment options.

To keep a check on the activities of unscrupulous elements involved in malpractices in reservation, preventive as well as regular checks are conducted  jointly/individually  by  Vigilance,  Security  and  Commercial Departments,  and  the  action  against the culprits is taken  as per provisions of Railways Act, 1989.

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