Overview
- Effective January 12, only Aadhaar-authenticated IRCTC users can book general reserved tickets online on the opening day of the Advance Reservation Period.
- Aadhaar-verified users are allowed to book throughout that first day until midnight.
- Bookings at computerised Passenger Reservation System counters proceed under the existing process with no changes.
- The policy caps a phased rollout that expanded from a 15‑minute check to morning windows before reaching full-day access.
- Railways report deactivating or temporarily suspending 5.73 crore suspicious or inactive IRCTC accounts as advanced tools monitor for misuse.