New advance rail ticket booking period from Wednesday

New Delhi: The advance booking period for train tickets will be reduced from existing four months to two months from Wednesday as part of the Railways' efforts to prevent touts to corner bulk tickets.

"The reduction of advance reservation period to 60 days will be a deterrent for touts who book bulk tickets in advance. We hope the reduction of booking period will help genuine travellers," a senior Railway Ministry official said.

However, all the bookings done up to April 30 under the existing advance reservation period (ARP) of 120 days will remain intact. In order to prevent touts from booking bulk tickets in advance, Railways have already increased the cancellation charges by Rs 10 to Rs 50 per ticket.