The West Central Railway, one of the 18 railway zones, has announced that passengers booking Tatkal tickets at reservation windows will be issued tokens before they can book their tickets.
According to the new rules, AC class passengers will get tokens between 8:30 am and 9 am, while non-AC passengers will receive tokens between 9 am and 9:30 am.
Currently, passengers must first collect a token and return later to book their tickets. People booking AC class Tatkal tickets get tokens between 9 am and 9:25 am, while those booking Sleeper or non-AC Tatkal tickets receive tokens between 9:30 am and 9:55 am. Now, the process will be completed in a single visit.
Saurabh Jain, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager (Sr DCM), Kota Division, said that each reservation counter will initially issue 10 tokens for AC classes and 15 tokens for non-AC classes.
“The number of tokens may be increased or decreased depending on local requirements and passenger rush,” Jain said. He also mentioned that after all token holders have completed their bookings, any remaining Tatkal tickets will be allotted to other passengers on a first-come, first-served basis.
The new system also gives priority to passengers booking tickets for their immediate family. Tokens will be issued under two categories – Category A and Category B.
Passengers booking tickets for immediate family members will be placed in Category A, while all other passengers will fall under Category B. Category A passengers will receive tokens first.
Railway officials said the token cannot be transferred to another person. The Tatkal ticket will be issued only to the person whose name is on the token. Passengers have also been advised to reach the reservation counter on time and carry a valid photo ID.
(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)
First Published: Jul 28, 2026 10:23 AM IST
