Indian Railways: Indian Railways has undertaken a significant initiative to enhance passenger convenience. The waiting list chart for reserved tickets will now be prepared 24 hours before the journey, instead of 4 hours previously. This change will provide passengers ample time to make alternative travel arrangements and will also increase transparency in the railway system.
This scheme was initially launched as a pilot project on a single train in the Bikaner division on June 6th. According to railway sources, the experiment has yielded positive results in the initial four days. This allows passengers to know in advance whether their tickets will be confirmed, enabling them to plan alternative travel arrangements if necessary.
Following the successful trial in Bikaner, this initiative will be implemented on other busy routes across the country. This includes routes from Delhi to states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, where waiting lists are typically very long.
This proposal was put forward by railway officials during the Railway Minister’s visit to Bikaner, and was immediately approved. Officials stated that preparing the chart a day in advance will give the railways time to plan the addition of extra coaches and the operation of clone trains.
An average of 21% of passengers cancel their bookings after ticket confirmation, and 4-5% do not travel at all. Preparing the chart a day in advance will allow the railways to better anticipate the actual number of passengers.
Importantly, the existing process for Tatkal (instant) tickets will remain unchanged despite this new system.
Source: Patrika