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The Indian Railways is set to change its boarding rules. Under the new system, if a passenger does not board the train at their designated boarding station, the TTE (Ticket Examiner) will no longer wait for them at the next station.

Indian Railways is implementing a major change to its train travel boarding rules, which will directly affect millions of passengers. Under the new system, if a passenger does not board the train at their designated boarding station, the TTE will no longer wait for them at the next station. As soon as the train departs from the boarding station and the passenger is not found in their seat, the seat will be immediately considered vacant. Under the new rules, during checking, the TTE will immediately enter a "not turned up" entry on their handheld device. This will indicate that the passenger did not board the train at the designated station. Once this entry is made, the seat will be considered vacant in the system, and the TTE will have no option to hold the seat.

Benefits for Waiting List and RAC Passengers

This change by the railways will primarily benefit passengers traveling on waiting list and RAC (Reservation Against Cancellation) tickets. As soon as a seat is declared vacant, the railway system will automatically allocate the berth to the next passenger on the waiting list. A message will be sent to the passenger's mobile phone as soon as the seat is allotted, providing instant confirmation.

Software Changes Instructed to CRIS

The Ministry of Railways has instructed that necessary changes be made to the railway software to implement this new system. The Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) has been given this responsibility. After the system is updated, this rule can be implemented on trains across the country, enabling better management of vacant seats.

Caution Required When Changing Boarding Station

According to railway data, approximately 3 to 5 percent of passengers on each train either cancel their journey or fail to reach their boarding station on time. Experts suggest that such passengers will now need to be more careful. If a passenger boards the train from a station other than the designated one, they must change their boarding station at least 24 hours before the chart is prepared. If this is not done, the seat will be given to someone else, and the passenger will not be able to claim it. The railways believe this decision is a major step towards digitalization. It will make the seat allocation process completely transparent and reduce delays and complaints related to vacant seats. Previously, waiting passengers faced difficulties due to the TTE having to wait until the next station, but now, real-time updates will allow passengers to get seats more quickly.