Now, under the revised timings, for AC classes, the reservation under Tatkal scheme will open at 10 a.m. on the previous day of journey from train originating station. For non-AC classes, it will start at 11 a.m.
At present, the booking under Tatkal scheme opens at 10:00 a.m. for all classes on the previous day of journey from train origination station.
The change has been effected to facilitate hassle-free booking by reducing the load on the server, the Press Trust of India said, quoting a senior Railway official. "Staggering the timing for AC and non-AC Tatkal tickets will help reducing load at windows and the ticketing sites, " he said.
In another change, all types of ticketing agents, including IRCTC agents, will now be debarred from booking tickets for 30 minutes from the opening of bookings - from 8 a.m. to 8.30 a.m. for general bookings, from 10 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. for Tatkal AC classes, and from 11 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. for Tatkal non-AC classes, the Railways said in a statement.
The Railways is also planning to refund a percentage of fare on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal tickets. At present, no such facility is available.
"We are considering to refund certain percentage. We will have a time frame and if a passenger cancels (a Tatkal ticket) within the time frame, he will be refunded accordingly, " the Press Trust of India, said quoting a senior Railway official.