Starting from October 1, 2025, Indian Railways will enforce a new booking policy that makes Aadhaar-based authentication mandatory for passengers trying to book reserved general tickets on the IRCTC website or mobile app. This requirement will apply specifically during the first 15 minutes after the reservation window opens.
Indian Railways to Make Aadhaar Authentication Mandatory for Online General Ticket Bookings from October 1, 2025
According to the Ministry of Railways, this move is designed to make sure that genuine passengers benefit from the reservation system and to curb misuse by unauthorised individuals who often exploit loopholes during the initial booking rush.
The ministry clarified that the existing schedule for general reserved ticket bookings at PRS counters (Passenger Reservation System counters) across Indian Railways will remain unchanged. In other words, the new Aadhaar requirement only affects online bookings during that first 15-minute window.
The 10-minute restriction already imposed on authorised railway ticketing agents for booking opening-day reserved tickets continues without any change. This means agents will still be prevented from making bookings during the initial 10 minutes after reservations open.
10-Minute Booking Restriction on Railway Agents to Continue Without Any Changes
The ministry’s release stated that the current 10-minute restriction on authorised railway ticketing agents for booking opening day reserved tickets continues to remain in force without any modifications.
This fresh rule for general ticket reservations comes only a few months after Indian Railways had already made Aadhaar authentication compulsory for Tatkal ticket bookings, a change that became effective on July 1, 2025.
From July 1, 2025, any passenger wanting to book a Tatkal ticket must first complete Aadhaar authentication, and the booking can only be made through the IRCTC website or its mobile application.
The July directive also introduced extra limitations for authorised ticketing agents regarding Tatkal bookings. These restrictions were put in place to give regular passengers the first opportunity to secure tickets.
Under these rules, authorised agents are barred from booking first-day Tatkal tickets for the first half hour after the quota opens.
For air-conditioned classes, this half-hour restriction applies between 10:00 am and 10:30 am.
For non-air-conditioned classes, the same restriction applies between 11:00 am and 11:30 am.
