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Only Aadhaar-authenticated users can book Tatkal tickets
Indian Railways on Wednesday announced that only Aadhar authenticated users will be able to book tickets online under the Tatkal scheme starting July 1
Indian Railways on Wednesday announced that only Aadhar authenticated users will be able to book tickets online under the Tatkal scheme starting July 1 to ensure fair access for genuine passengers.
In a circular dated June 10, the railway ministry informed all zones that this decision was “aimed at enhancing user authentication and reducing misuse of the scheme”.
“Effective 1st July 2025, Tatkal tickets booked through IRCTC’s (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited) official website and mobile app will be available only to users authenticated with Aadhaar. Aadhaar-based OTP authentication will become mandatory for Tatkal bookings made online starting 15th July 2025,” the ministry said.
The Aadhaar safeguards come as the railways revealed it has blocked 24 million user accounts and flagged another 2 million as suspicious in the past six months as part of a major crackdown on misuse of the Tatkal ticketing system.
Currently, only 12 million of IRCTC’s 130 million registered users are Aadhaar-verified.
The Railways has also introduced system-based OTP authentication at passenger reservation system (PRS) counters and for authorised agents. Railways said that users booking tickets at these points will receive an OTP on their registered mobile number, which will be required to complete the booking. This provision too will be enforced from July 15.
“Tatkal tickets shall be available for booking through computerized PRS (Passenger Reservation System) counters of Indian Railways/authorized agents only after authentication of a system-generated OTP, which shall be sent through the system on the mobile number furnished by the users at the time of booking. This shall also be implemented by 15/07/2025,”
“To prevent bulk bookings during the critical opening period, authorised ticketing agents of Indian Railways will not be permitted to book opening-day Tatkal tickets during the first 30 minutes of the booking window,’ a railways official said.
“For AC classes, this restriction applies from 10:00 AM to 10:30 AM, and for non-AC classes, from 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM,” he added.
Railway authorities have directed the Centre for Railway Information Systems (organization responsible for designing, developing, and implementing various information systems.) and IRCTC ( a subsidiary of the Indian Railways that manages catering, hospitality, online ticketing, and tourism services) to carry out necessary system updates and inform all Zonal Railways to ensure smooth implementation. Passengers have been urged to link their Aadhaar with IRCTC profiles well in advance to avoid disruptions in booking.
These changes underline the government’s focus on ensuring fair access to Tatkal tickets and delivering the benefits of the scheme to genuine users.
