Railway Tatkal ticket booking is meant for those passengers who need to undertake train journey at a short note. IRCTC, the online e-ticketing arm of Indian Railways, provides the facility of booking Tatkal tickets online. The bulk of the Tatkal tickets is booked as soon as the segment opens for booking. Tatkal ticket bookings were first introduced in 1997 in some trains and later extended to other trains. Railways charges extra for tickets booked under the Tatkal quota - known as Tatkal charges. You should look for tickets first under the general quota availability before booking Tatkal tickets, says IRCTC.
Remember that no concession is allowed in train ticket booking under Tatkal quota. Tatkal bookings are not allowed First AC class.
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Tatkal Ticket Booking Timings
Bookings for Tatkal tickets open a day in advance of the actual date of journey. Bookings for Tatkal tickets of AC classes open at 10:00 am and for non-AC classes at 11:00 am.
Tatkal Reservation Charges
Tatkal charges are fixed as a percentage of fare at the rate of 10 per cent of basic fare for second class and at the rate of 30 per cent of basic fare for all other classes subject to minimum and maximum charges.
Class of travel Minimum Tatkal charges (in Rs.) Maximum Tatkal charges (in Rs.) Minimum distance for charge (in km)
Second (sitting) 10 15 100
Sleeper 100 200 500
AC Chair Car 125 225 250
AC 3 Tier 300 400 500
AC 2 Tier 400 500 500
Executive 400 500 250
Tatkal Train Ticket Cancellation
No refund is granted on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal tickets.
Tatkal Ticket Refund For Wait-Listed, RAC Tickets
For RAC (Reservation Against Cancellation) or waitlisted tickets booked under Tatkal quota, a refund is made if the ticket is cancelled up to 30 minutes before the scheduled departure, according to the IRCTC website - irctc.co.in. If confirmed reservation has been provided to an RAC or wait-listed ticket holder at any time up to final preparation of charts, such a ticket is treated as confirmed.
If a train is running late by more than three hours or the train is cancelled, please file Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR) with proper reason for claiming refund, according to the IRCTC website.
Tatkal Refund Rules
Here are some of the rules mentioned by Railways on its website, where it grants full refunds of Tatkal tickets:
If the train is delayed by more than 3 hours at the journey originating point of the passenger
If the train is to run on a diverted route and passenger is not willing to travel
If the train is to run on diverted route and boarding station or the destination or both the stations are not on the diverted route
In case of non-attachment of coach in which Tatkal accommodation has been earmarked and the passenger has not been provided accommodation in the same class.
If the party has been accommodated in lower class and does not want to travel (In case the party travels in lower class, the passenger will be given refund of difference of fare and also the difference of Tatkal charges, if any.)
Other Things To Know On Railway Ticket Booking
In case of family e-ticket issued for travel of more than one passenger, some passengers have confirmed reservation and others are on RAC or waiting list, full refund of fare, less clerkage, shall be admissible for confirmed passengers also subject to the condition that the ticket shall be cancelled online for all the passengers up to thirty minutes before the scheduled departure of the train, mentions the IRCTC website.