The Indian Railways is set to significantly boost its passenger reservation capacity, upgrading its existing system to handle over 100,000 tickets per minute, a fourfold increase from the current 25,000. The modernisation project will be implemented through the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS).
According to Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the existing Passenger Reservation System (PRS), deployed in 2010, operates on Itanium servers with an Open VMS (Virtual Memory System) platform. The transition will replace this legacy infrastructure with cloud-compatible systems, alongside new hardware, software, network equipment, and enhanced security protocols.
“Change in Advanced Reservation Period (ARP), based on trend of booking and feedback is a continuous and ongoing exercise. The present PRS can book about 25,000 ticket per minute and new system is designed for more than 4 times this capacity,” the minister told Parliament.
The upgraded PRS is designed to meet the evolving expectations of passengers and will be capable of integrating additional features in the future.
Booking Period Shortened To Reduce Cancellations
Effective November 1, 2024, the Advance Reservation Period for trains that previously allowed bookings 120 days ahead will be reduced to 60 days, excluding the day of travel. Vaishnaw said the decision is aimed at aligning with booking patterns and minimising cancellations caused by unforeseen events.
RailOne App Brings Reservations To Smartphones
In a move to make bookings more accessible, Indian Railways has launched the RailOne mobile app, enabling passengers to reserve both AC and non-AC tickets directly from their smartphones.
Focus On Non-AC Travel Facilities
The Railways is also addressing the demand for affordable travel. Non-AC coaches now make up about 70 per cent of total coaches in service, and a special manufacturing drive aims to add 17,000 more general and sleeper coaches over the next five years. In 2024–25 alone, 1,250 general coaches were deployed across long-distance routes.
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