Have you ever used the online ticket booking service of Indian Railway through its online portal at IRCTC.com then I think you must have came across several irregularities while getting the online ticket in the peak season time i.e in summer or winter vacations. In the peak season most of the time IRCTC  servers is supposed to be overloaded. And with the Tatkal ticket services it has to be a total mess….

But now it seems that the hassles about IRCTC  would become a matter of past as it has just redesigned its website structure with a very helpful user interface… and every information like tickets availability in every train passing through the destination and departing station will be displayed at once that was earlier only possible using a grease monkey script in Mozilla Firefox.. Read more about greasemonkey script for IRCTC. Apart from the seats availability the fare information and class selection can also be declared from with in a single screen.

Do you know that there is also a great enhancement already applied … if you are a regular visitor or a subscribed visitor than you can guess what am i talking about.. yes the online booking of tickets right from the midnight to upto midnight i.e from 00.30 to 23.30 recall my earlier post  Now Book online Railway Tickets before 8 am its 12.30 am…

Though the changes implemented looks very nice but still are in beta phase and will be fully functional at the Independence Day (15 August)… if you wanted more info then visit the IRCTC beta website testing… but in the mean time don’t forget to subscribe for the feedburner’s newsletter for daily news of new articles.

Update As on 3-11-11

Apart from the above; enhancing the IRCTC websites… today I have got an email from the IRCTC stating …. they are working hard ensuring fully customer satisfaction… find the email below…

Dear Passenger,
You have been our valued customer and we thank you for patronizing our website www.irctc.co.in for booking your tickets. As a part of the passenger education drive: Jago Yatri Jago, we would like you to be aware and enlightened about the e ticketing procedure. Kindly go through at your leisure.

Book Your E-Tickets Sitting At Home
Booking of train e tickets has become very simple and convenient now. Just follow the simple steps and you are ready to travel

* Log on to www.irctc.co.in
* Create your user ID and password by registering in the website. (First Time Only)
* Enter travel and passenger details in simple steps.
* Pay on line. We have the widest range of payment options on any site:
Credit Cards : – We accept Visa, Master, Amex and Diners
Debit Cards : – (42 major cards)
Net Banking : – (19 major banks)
Cash Cards : – (ITZ Cash Card, Done Cash Card, I-Cash Card, Oxicash Card)
* Take a print out of your ticket or Save Paper by carrying just a screen shot of the e-ticket which you can display in your laptop, tabs or mobile phones.
* Carry your proof of identity during the journey. ((Voter Identity Card / Passport / PAN Card / Driving License / Photo ID card issued by Central / State Govt /Student Identity Card with photograph issued by recognized School or College for their students /Nationalised Bank Passbook with photograph /Credit Cards issued by Banks with laminated photograph)

Book Your E-Tickets Through Your Agent Outlet

* IRCTC has a network of about 1,50,000 authorized agent outlets across the country for the convenience of its customers.
* Details of authorized agent outlets are available on the IRCTC website www.irctc.co.in. You can check the list of agent outlets of your area by entering your area Postal PIN Code.
* While visiting an IRCTC agent make sure that: –
You visit a genuine IRCTC authorized agent outlet – IRCTC authorization letter should be prominently displayed.
Demand for a requisition form to fill up the details and always ask for a receipt for all your bookings / cancellations.
Check that the service charges levied by IRCTC are displayed. If not, you may ask for the same.

While Collecting Your E-ticket, Please Check: –

* Check whether you mobile number is printed on the e-ticket. Mobile number is mandatory for all passengers. All agents are required to enter the passengers mobile number.
* Soon after booking the e-ticket, you will receive a SMS from IRCTC on this number with details of your bookings including the fare and service charge. Cross check your e-ticket charges with the SMS received from IRCTC.
* Services Charges per e-ticket (Charges are per ticket irrespective of number of passengers on the ticket)
IRCTC Service Charges Agent Service Charges Total
AC I, II and III Rs. 20.00 Rs. 20.00 Rs. 40.00
Sleeper Class Rs. 10.00 Rs. 10.00 Rs. 20.00
There are no additional charges for printing of tickets or stationery charges.

* If the agent demands more than the prescribed service charge, you may lodge a complaint in the e-mail ids of agentcomplaint@irctc.co.in or care@irctc.co.in or call us at 011-39340000 / 23344787.
* All e-tickets should have the name of the agent outlet booking the ticket along with address, contact number and name of the Principal Agent.
* E-tickets can be cancelled through the same agent outlet without any additional service charges for cancellation.

Never Buy Tatkal E-tickets from Agents between 8 AM To 9 AM

* The Tatkal tickets are made available to the passengers through the IRCTC website www.irctc.co.in and the railway reservation counter on first come first serve basis.
* Between 8AM To 9AM, the website is open exclusively for individual users who wish to buy Tatkal e-tickets on line as the agents are barred from booking Tatkal tickets during that time.
* If it is found that you are traveling with Tatkal tickets booked by agents between 8AM to 9AM, your ticket is liable to be cancelled.

Never Book Tickets With Fictitious Names
If you are found travelling with tickets under fictitious names, your e-ticket is liable to be cancelled by the Railway Administration and penal action may be initiated.
Note: –
IRCTC Agents are only authorized to book e-tickets (print out on plain paper). I-tickets (provided on Railway Ticket Stationery) cannot be sold by them.
Cancellation Process: –
Before Train Chart Preparation:

E-Tickets can be cancelled on Internet till Chart preparation of the train.
Log on to www.irctc.co.in and go to “Booked Tickets” link and select the ticket to be cancelled and can initiate the cancellation by selecting the passengers to be cancelled.

Cancellation of e-Tickets after the preparation of Reservation charts:

After chart preparation, users have to file the online Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) and track Status of the refund case through tracking service provided by IRCTC. Refund is credited to Customers Bank account after receipt from Railways.

Refund of Wait Listed Tickets: –
The ticket in which on one PNR, all the passengers are on waitlist, PNRs are dropped from the reservation charts and money is refunded in respective bank account electronically

Courtesy:
IRCTC Vigilance

 

 

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