During the festive season, especially until Diwali and Chhath, Indian Railways sees a huge rush of passengers.
This leads to long queues at stations and difficulty in booking tickets. To reduce passenger inconvenience, the Ministry of Railways has launched a “Round Trip Package for Festival Rush” scheme.
Under this scheme, passengers will get 20% off on the base fare of return tickets if they book both onward and return tickets together.
Duration of Offer and Travel Dates
Booking Start Date: 14 August 2025
Onward Journey: 13 to 26 October 2025
Return Journey: 17 November to 1 December 2025
Discount applies only on the base fare of the return ticket.
Scheme is designed especially for festive season travelers.
Purpose and Benefits
The main aim of this scheme is to:
Ensure confirmed seats during festive rush.
Reduce travel expenses for passengers.
Promote two-way travel using Indian Railways.
Improve usage of special trains during the season.
Discount Details and Conditions
20% discount on base fare of return tickets only.
Tickets must be for same class, train, route, and passenger details for both legs of the journey.
No refunds, changes, or other discounts (passes, vouchers, concessions) allowed.
Booking must be done either entirely online or entirely at the station counter—mixed modes not allowed.
Not applicable on flexi-fare trains like Rajdhani, Shatabdi, etc.
Impact of the Scheme
This offer will:
Help passengers travel during festivals at lower costs.
Reduce station overcrowding.
Balance the load on busy trains.
Remove last-minute ticket booking stress by ensuring both onward and return tickets are confirmed together.
How to Book
From 14 August 2025, log in to IRCTC or visit the station booking counter.
Select the onward ticket using the “Connecting Journey” option.
Book the return ticket with exact same details (mode, passenger info, train class, and route).
Once confirmed, the system will automatically apply the 20% discount on the return ticket fare.
