Indian Railways has announced a major change in the online ticket booking system.
From October 1, 2025, during the first 15 minutes after reservation opens, only passengers whose IRCTC account is linked with Aadhaar will be able to book tickets online.
This rule will apply to both the IRCTC website and the mobile app.
The main purpose of this rule is to give priority to genuine passengers.
Until now, many seats were quickly booked by agents or software, which caused trouble for common passengers.
With Aadhaar verification, only real passengers will be able to book tickets during this critical window.
What About Counter and Agent Booking?
There is no change in ticket booking timings at railway station counters.
At counters, booking will continue as usual.
Authorized railway agents will also face restrictions: they cannot book tickets for the first 10 minutes after reservation opens.
This means for the first 15 minutes, Aadhaar-verified passengers get priority online, and for the next 10 minutes, common passengers still get preference over agents.
Technical Updates and Awareness Campaign
The Center for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) and IRCTC have been asked to make the required technical changes.
Along with this, Indian Railways will run a large-scale awareness campaign to inform passengers about the new booking rules.
A circular has already been issued to all divisions by the Railway Ministry.
Benefits for Passengers
This change is expected to bring more transparency to the ticketing system.
Genuine passengers will have a better chance of getting confirmed tickets in the early booking window.
Linking with Aadhaar will also help in preventing fraud and stopping bookings through fake accounts.
In the future, IRCTC may further strengthen Aadhaar-based ticketing for added security.
