New Railway Time Table Effective from 15.8.2018

New Railway Time Table Effective from 15.8.2018

Ministry of Railways will be releasing its new All India Railway Time Table known as “TRAINS AT A GLANCE (TAG)” effective from 15th August, 2018

Ministry of Railways

Ministry of Railways will be Releasing New All India Railway Time Table (Train at A Glance) With Effect From 15th August 2018

In addition to The “Trains at a Glance”, All Zonal Railways will also be Releasing their respective Zonal Railway Time Tables

The Ministry of Railways will be releasing its new All India Railway Time Table known as “TRAINS AT A GLANCE (TAG)” effective from 15th August, 2018. In addition to the “Trains at a Glance”, all the 17 Zonal Railways will also be releasing their respective Zonal Railway Time Tables (5 Zonal time tables in all, each Zonal Time Table comprising 3-4 Zonal Railways) which will also come into effect from 15th August, 2018. The new Trains at a Glance will also be available w.e.f. 15th August, 2018 on Indian Railways’ official website i.e. www.indianrailways.gov.in.

Important highlights of the new time table are as follows:

Overview

Indian Railways runs about 3500 reserved trains which include Gatiman Express, Rajdhani Express, Humsaafar Express, Tejas Express, Duronto Express, Antyodaya Express, Garib Rath Express, Shatabdi Express, Sampark Kranti Express, YUVA Express, Janshatabdi Express and other types of Express trains. This is in addition to about 4600 Passenger and 5000 EMU trains. The volume of passengers carried daily is about 2.22 million.

In addition, more than 36000 Special train trips were run during 2017-18 to clear extra rush and meet passenger demand. About 500 coaches were permanently augmented in about 300 trains to increase the carrying capacity.

III. Proliferation of new train services: In the year 2017-18, 90 number of new services was introduced, 43 number of services were extended and increase in frequency of 9 number of services was done. In the current year upto 15.08.2018, 35 number of services have already been introduced, 28 number of services have been extended and increase in frequency of 5 number of services have been effected. Till date, 23 Humsafar Express trains, 10 Antyodaya Express trains, 1 Tejas Express, 1 Uday Express which have already been introduced have been incorporated in the new Time Table. In addition, 1 Antyodaya Express train, 2 Tejas Express, 2 Uday Express trains still to be introduced have also been included. After a review of lie over periods of rakes at destinations it was noticed that rake utilization can be further improved. The review revealed that rakes of trains that were having lie overs at the terminals can be utilized for providing new services, extending existing services and increase the frequency of some trains. Accordingly 24 new trains, 66 extension of trains and 4 increase in frequency of trains which have already been started using the lie over rakes have been incorporated in the new Time Table w.e.f. 15.08.2018.

IV. Replacement of conventional Passenger trains with MEMU/DEMU: The short distance passenger trains especially having reversal enroute are being replaced by Mainline Electric Multiple Units (MEMUs) & Diesel Electric Multiple Units (DEMUs). In the year 2017-18, 57 number of conventional passenger services have been replaced by MEMUs/DEMUs thereby increasing the overall mobility of the system. In the current year, 50 conventional services have already been replaced by MEMU/DEMU upto 15.08.2018 and 50 more conventional services are planned to be replaced by 31.03.2019.

Corridor blocks: To provide sufficient time for the maintenance of the fixed infrastructure like track structure, signalling gears, overhead equipments, it has been planned to ensure provision of fixed corridor blocks. Zonal Railways have incorporated traffic corridor blocks of 2.5 to 3 hours duration in the new Working Time Table w.e.f. 15.08.2018. In the WTT 2018, the duration of corridor blocks is about 292 hours more than the corridor blocks available in WTT 2017.

VI. Mega blocks: In addition, 4 to 5 hours mega block has also been worked out in different sections of each Division on one day of the week (preferably Sunday) to carry out major maintenance works. In these mega blocks, all maintenance works including civil, over head traction (OHE), signal & telecommunication will be undertaken by pooling of resources to achieve maximum output. This will not only improve the reliability of the assets but also enhance the passenger safety. Mega blocks on more than 95% sections in all the Divisions of Indian Railways have been incorporated in the new time table. The intimation of mega block planned for Sunday is to be conveyed to Railway Board by Tuesday. In case mega block is availed, Zonal Railways may allow 2 hours corridor block on 3 alternate days in the week.

Charting at booked speed: The charting of trains having MPS of 110 Kmph has been carried out at 105 Kmph to the extent possible to reflect actual running. This will further help in improving the punctuality of the trains. The Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Tejas, Gatimaan, Humsafar, Garibrath, Duronto & Antyodaya Express trains having MPS of 130 Kmph have however been charted at 130 kmph.

Efforts to improve punctuality of late running trains: A careful analysis of the reasons for loss of punctuality has been carried out for trains regularly running late and necessary changes in the time table have been incorporated to improve punctuality.

IX. Replacement of conventional rakes by LHB rakes: To provide more safe and comfortable journey the conventional rakes are being replaced by LHB rakes. In the year 2017-18, 49 number of conventional rakes have been replaced by LHB rakes. In the current financial year, 48 rakes have already been replaced by LHB rakes upto 15.08.2018 and 66 more rakes are planned to be replaced by 31.03.2019.

Rationalization of terminals: To avoid criss-cross movement at important stations, the terminals of important trains have been changed. In the current financial year, terminals of 23 number of trains have been shifted. 12 trains in NR, 5 trains in NCR, 1 trains in ECR, 1 train in NWR & 4 trains in SCR have been shifted.

XI. Bye passing of terminals to avoid reversal: To streamline the operations by avoiding reversal, 20 trains have been shifted to adjacent terminals. In the current financial year, the terminals of 4 trains in SECR, 7 trains in WCR, 2 trains in ECoR, 5 trains in SER & 2 trains in NCR have been shifted.

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How to Change Passenger name in IRCTC Reserved Ticket?

How to Change Passenger name in IRCTC Reserved Ticket?

CHANGE OF NAME OF A PASSENGER ON CONFIRMED RESERVATION TICKET

A change of name in reservation is permitted only by Sr.Divisonal Commercial Manager of concerned division. Where there is no post of Sr.Divisonal Commercial Manager, the change of name in reservation is permitted by Divisional Commercial Manager of concerned division on written requisition tendered by party along with documents as required under the rules 24 hours prior to the scheduled departure of train in following circumstances.

(i) Government servant proceeding on duty on production of a letter from the appropriate authority.

(ii) Between family members due to unavoidable circumstances, viz. father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter, husband and wife. No cancellation and reservation charges are recovered in this case. The station Manager will be competent to permit alteration of reservation under the condition mentioned above.

(iii) However, in case of group travelling together, party’s written request should be tendered in writing 48 hours before scheduled departure of train and change of name is not permitted in excess of 10% of total strength of the group/party.

Change in the Name of Passenger Holding Confirmed Reservation

1. Save as otherwise, a berth or a seat reserved in the name of a person shall be used only by the person and shall not be transferable to any other person.

2. Chief Reservation Supervisor of important stations are authorized by Railway Administration to permit the change of name of a passenger having a seat or berth reserved in his name in the following circumstances namely :

(a) Where the passenger is a Government Servant, proceeding on duty and appropriate authority, makes a request in writing 24 hours before the scheduled departure of trains

(b) Where the passenger makes a request in writing 24 hours before the scheduled departure of the train that the reservation made in his name may be transferred to another member of his family, meaning, Father, Mother, Brother, Sister, Son, Daughter, Husband and Wife.

(c) Where the passengers are students of a recognized educational institution and the Head of the institution makes a request in writing 48 hours before the scheduled departure of the train, that the reservation made in the name of any student be transferred to any other student of the same institute.

(d) Where the passengers are members of a marriage party and any person deemed to be Head of such party makes a request in writing 48 hours before the scheduled departure of the train that the reservation made in the name of any member of the marriage party be transferred to any other person.

(e) Where the passengers are a group of cadets of National Cadet Corps and any officer who is the head of the group, makes a request in writing at least 24 hours before the departure of the train that the reservation made in the name of any cadet be transferred to any other cadet.

Such request will be granted only once. Regarding item no. (c), (d) and (e), such request for change in excess of 10% of the total strength of group shall not be granted.

Source: www.indianrailways.gov.in

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ePaylater Project introduced by IRCTC

ePaylater Project introduced by IRCTC

Booking of Railway Tickets Without Paying Money In Advance

A scheme of booking e-ticket online and making payment after 15 days through ‘ePaylater’ powered by M/s Arthashastra Fintech Pvt. Ltd., as pilot project, has been introduced by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC). Under this scheme, a customer has the option to pay after 15 days of booking an e-ticket through IRCTC website. The service charge levied on using ‘ePaylater’ scheme is 3.50% of transaction amount and applicable taxes. Online ticketing through IRCTC website is gaining popularity and its share vis-à-vis counter tickets is increasing. Further, online ticket booking is also being promoted as a cashless mode of transaction.

ePaylater as a payment option is displayed at the payment page of IRCTC website to make people aware about the availability of this payment method. Details about its service charge and ‘Terms & Conditions’ of the scheme are also provided at the payment option page.

This information was made available in reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

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Policy on earmarking of berths on demand from IRCTC for value added tour packages

Policy on earmarking of berths on demand from IRCTC for value added tour packages

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (RAILWAY BOARD)

No. 2013/TG-I/20/P/VAT

New Delhi, Dated: 05.02.2018

The Principal Chief Commercial Managers, All Zonal Railways

(COMMERCIAL CIRCULAR NO. 09 OF 2018)

Sub: Policy on earmarking of berths on demand from IRCTC for value added tour packages.

Please refer to this office letter of even number dated 06.05.2016 (CC No. 23 of 2016 and corrigendum thereon) forwarding therewith detailed features of the poiicy on earmarking of berths on demand from IRCTC for Value Added Tour (VAT) packages

2.The matter has been reviewed and it has been decided to amend following provisions of the scheme.

Para No.	Existing Provision	Revised Provision
2.1	For each berth utilized by IRCTC, IRCTC shall pay the full fare plus 25% service charge. No concession whatsoever shall be admissible on such tour package ticket. Ticket for child, senior citizens, etc. shall also be issued on full fare. The method of arriving at the fare including the service charge and deposit is illustrated in the annexure	For each berth utilized by IRCTC, IRCTC shall pay the full fare plus 15% service charge. No concession whatsoever shall be admissible on such tour package ticket. Ticket for child, senior citizens, etc. shall also be issued on full fare.
3.1	Out of total berths earmarked for this purpose for IRCTC, not more than 20% of the earmarked berths shall be permitted for cancellation. No cancellation shall be permitted within 48 hours of the scheduled departure of the train	No cancellation shall be permitted within 48 hours of the scheduled departure of the train.

3.The revised provisions mentioned above will be implemented for a period of one year during which a quarterly assessment will be made on financial impact on Indian Railways revenue and if required the review of policy will be undertaken.

4.This issues with the concurrence of Finance Directorate of this Ministry. These instructions will take effect from the date of issue of this letter.

5.Necessary instructions may be issued to all concerned accordingly.

sd/- (Shelly Srivastava) Directorate Passenger Marketing Railway Board

Source: NFIR

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Relaxation from Payment of Service Charge in Internet Booking of Railway Tickets through IRCTC

Relaxation from Payment of Service Charge in Internet Booking of Railway Tickets through IRCTC 

Press Information Bureau 

Government of India

Ministry of Railways

Relaxation from payment of Service Charge in internet booking of Railway tickets through IRCTC 

Ministry of Railways has decided that in order to help passengers and incentivise the payment through credit/debit/cash cards instead of cash payment for booking of reserved tickets, Service Charge shall not be collected on booking of e-tickets/ i-tickets from 23rd November to 31st December, 2016. Service Charge is Rs. 20 on sleeper/ 2nd Class and Rs. 40 on AC classes for booking through IRCTC.

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E-Catering Service for Train Passengers

Press Information Bureau 

Government of India

Ministry of Railways

E-Catering Service for Train Passengers 

E-catering service has been started by Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) on pilot basis exclusively for passengers travelling in trains without pantry where passenger can book preferred meal of reputed brands through e-catering website as well as through phone and SMS. The website address is www.ecatering.irctc.co.in and phone numbers are 1800-1034-139 (Toll-free), 0120-4383892-99 (Toll) and SMS MEAL to 139. Further, Railways have also conducted trials for service of pre-cooked (ready-to-eat) meals of reputed brands on some trains. A policy guideline on “Ready to Eat Meals” has been issued to Zonal Railways on 30.01.2015. North Western Railway has been nominated for shortlisting/empanelment of branded and reputed Ready-to-eat Companies/vendors. 

This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Manoj Sinha in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today. 

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Railways’ Cash-on-Delivery Service for E-Tickets

Press Information Bureau 

Government of India

Ministry of Railways 

Railways’ Cash-on-Delivery Service for E-Tickets 

     Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC), a public sector undertaking of the Ministry of Railways, has launched Cash on Delivery (CoD) service for e-tickets w.e.f. 01.01.2015 on pilot basis. The salient features of the scheme are as under:

·                Under this scheme, the customer books the tickets online through the following channels and opts for Cash on Delivery service or may make online payment:

                                                        i.            www.bookmytrain.com

                                                      ii.            Bookmytrain App on Android platform.

                                                    iii.            Bookmytrain App on Windows platform.

                                                    iv.            Bookmytrain App on BlackBerry platform.

                                                      v.            Bookmytrain App on iOS platform.

·                The customer can book tickets up to five days prior to commencement of journey.

          Introduction of the scheme for facilitating the passengers and its proliferation based on feedback is a continuous and ongoing process.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Manoj Sinha in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

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‘Facilitation Fee’ to be levied by authorised travel agents on air tickets booked on Government account- Regarding.

No.19024/1/2012-E-IV
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Expenditure

North Block, New Delhi
Dated the 10th October, 2013

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Subject:- ‘Facilitation Fee’ to be levied by authorised travel agents on air tickets booked on Government account- Regarding.

   Attention is invited to this Department’s O.M. of even number dated 28th May, 2013 wherein all Ministries/Departments were advised not to pay Agency Commission/Charges etc. charged by M/s Balmer Lawrie & Company Limited (BLCL) in their Bills, raised for air tickets booked on Government account, till a final decision is taken in the matter.

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Guidelines on Air Travel on Official Tours / Leave Travel Concession (LTC) – reg.

No.19024/1/2012-E.IV
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Expenditure

North Block. New Delhi
Dated the 9th July, 2013

Office Memorandum

Subject: Guidelines on Air Travel on Official Tours / Leave Travel Concession (LTC) – reg.

   Reference is invited to instructions issued by the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance from time-to-time regarding the procedure for booking of air tickets on Government account. As per existing procedure Government officials/offices can book the air tickets directly from Airlines (at Booking counters / Website of Airlines) and if needed, by utilizing the services of authorized agents. viz. M/s Balmer Lawrie & Company Limited (BLCL) and M/s Ashok Travels & Tours (ATT) [Department of Expenditure OM No.19024/1/2009-E.IV dated 16/09/2010 refers]. Air tickets for travel on LTC, to a limited extent, can also be get booked through Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation(IRCTC) [Department of Personnel & Training 0M No. 31011/6/2002-Estt.(A) dated 02/12/2009 refers].

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Inclusion of bedroll charges in the fare of Garib Rath Express.

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
(RAILWAY BOARD)

No. 2008/TG-V/18/09

New Delhi, dated 18.10. 2012.

The General Managers,
All Zonal Railways.

(Commercial Circular No.64 of 2012)

Sub:- Inclusion of bedroll charges in the fare of Garib Rath Express.

   As per instructions issued under letter no.2006/TG-III/645/4 dated 23.10.2006, bedroll charges for Garib Rath Express trains are @ ` 25/- per bedroll. At present, these bedrolls are supplied to the passengers on demand and charges, collected separately from the passengers. Of late, frequent complaints are received from various sources regarding supply of used bedroll or half set of bedroll to the passengers, excess charging of passengers, non- issuance of receipt, etc. Apart from causing discontent amongst passengers, this also leads to loss of revenue to the Railways.

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Procedure Order for Implementing Service Tax Refunds on Passenger Fare Tickets Booked and Cancelled on or after 01.10.2012.

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
RAILWAY BOARD

No.TCII/2910/2012/Service Tax

New Delhi dt. 29.09.2012

Commercial Circular No. 60 of 2012

The General Managers,
All Indian Railways

Subject: Procedure Order for Implementing Service Tax Refunds on Passenger Fare Tickets Booked and Cancelled on or after 01.10.2012.

   This refers to Commercial Circular No.59 of 2012 on the levy of service tax on transportation of passengers by Rail in Air-conditioned classes and 1 AC Class. The following has been stated therein:

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Service Charge on Booking of E-Tickets.

   The Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) doe not levy any charges on cancellation of e-tickets on account of non-confirmation. A nominal service charge of Rs. 10/- per PNR for e-ticket issued for Sleeper & reserved Second Sitting (2S) and Rs. 20/- per PNR for e-tickets in other classes is charged. The service charge realized is used to meet Administrative cost, Maintenance cost of IT hardware and software, technical manpower costs of service providers, recurring expenditure like rent, electricity charges, internet bandwidth charges, cost for investments in capacity enhancement and also replacement of obsolete IT equipments etc.

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Accepting SMS Sent by IRCTC on Par With Electronic Reservation Slip (ERS) for Undertaking Train Journey on E-Tickets

   In a move to further make Train Reservation Ticketing System passenger friendly, the Ministry of Railways has decided to permit Short Messaging Service (SMS) sent by its PSU, Indian Railways Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) containing vital details as an instrument on par with the Electronic Reservation Slip (ERS). This has come into effect from 1st February, 2012.

   The mandatory features of the authorized SMS are (a) SMS sent by IRCTC/Railways will be considered for this purpose and (b) The SMS would contain all the vital ticket details like PNR, Train Number, Date of Journey, Class, Name & Number of Passengers, Coach & Seat Number and Fare paid. (c) Also if feasible, the SMS will accommodate the names of all passengers booked on the e-ticket, otherwise maximum number of passengers.

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IRCTC’s Website and 139 Rail Sampark Reorient to Five Digits Train Numbers

  

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited as the Official agency for the Indian Railways for issuance of e-tickets and i-tickets through its website www.irctc.co.in has made necessary changes in its website for smooth switchover to the five digits train number system. The proactive changes in the Computerized Passenger Reservation System would ensure smooth operations and reduce the resultant complexities in booking reserved accommodation on trains, with the new train numbers. IRCTC, has already begun printing the five digit train numbers on its e-tickets and i-tickets for any date of journey, from today onwards.

Indian Railways, in its effort to improve passenger services is introducing five digit train numbers from today. Till now, the train numbers used to be in four digits and some even in alpha-numeric.

IRCTC’s 139 Rail Sampark, the custodian for the Rail Enquiry System is up and ready too to work in sync with the Indian Railways. The All India 139 Rail Enquiry System has also geared up to provide information on accommodation availability, arrival, departure, fare and other time table enquiry with new train numbers.

Further, an exclusive utility to know the new train numbers has also been provided at www.irctc.co.in for the passengers, which is amongst the top ten sites most visited on Google too. IRCTC had added number 7 to the existing menu in the 139 facility from 19th December 2010 midnight to enable passengers to find the new train numbers in a hassle free manner. The new menu will now be one–for PNR Status, two – for Arrival/Departure, three-for Accommodation Availability, four-for Fare Enquiry, five- for Booking ticket by Cash/for delivery of tickets by courier and now seven – for New Train numbers.

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