New Tatkal Ticket Booking Rules from July 2025: Aadhaar OTP, Agent Restrictions & More
Starting in July 2025, the Indian Railways will make big changes to the Tatkal ticket buying process. These changes are meant to make the system more fair and stop people from abusing it. Regular travellers and booking agents will be greatly affected by the new rules, especially those who depend on fast AC and non-AC Tatkal tickets.
Key Highlights of the New Tatkal Rules:
1. Aadhaar OTP Verification Now Mandatory
This change adds an extra layer of identity authentication, ensuring only genuine passengers are able to book Tatkal tickets.
- At the time of booking, the IRCTC system will send a one-time password (OTP) to the Aadhaar-linked mobile number.
- The ticket can only be booked after successful OTP submission.
- This applies to both IRCTC website and authorized app users.
Starting July 1, 2025, everyone who books a Tatkal ticket will have to go through an Aadhaar-based OTP verification. This change is meant to cut down on fake plans and stop people from making multiple reservations using fake names. This is how it will work:
2. Booking Agents Barred for First 30 Minutes
This move is designed to give individual passengers a better chance at securing tickets without facing unfair competition from automated tools used by agents.
- For AC classes, Tatkal opens at 10:00 AM — agents can book only from 10:30 AM onward.
- For non-AC classes, Tatkal opens at 11:00 AM — agents can book only from 11:30 AM onward.
To make the process more transparent and equitable, IRCTC agents will no longer be allowed to book Tatkal tickets during the first 30 minutes of opening :
3. Enhanced Ticket Booking Monitoring
IRCTC will also start watching booking behaviour in real time to stop suspicious activity and tickets by bots. Accounts that have a lot of high-speed entries or behaviour that doesn’t seem normal may be reported or briefly stopped.
4. Focus on Transparency & User Fairness
These changes reflect Indian Railways’ commitment to:
- Reducing misuse of the Tatkal scheme.
- Making tickets more accessible for genuine, last-minute travelers.
- Curbing black marketing and resale of Tatkal tickets.
Conclusion
There will be big changes coming to how the IRCTC handles justice, identity verification, and ease for normal travellers with the Tatkal ticket improvements. The new method aims to make things easier and safer for millions of train customers across India by requiring Aadhaar OTP and limiting the role of agents during the initial booking time. If you want to buy a Tatkal ticket after July 2025, make sure that your Aadhaar number is linked to your phone number and that you have an OTP ready to prove who you are.
In the years to come, these steps will make the Tatkal system safer, clearer, and easier to use.
Disclaimer
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