Aiming to prevent the misuse of its ticket booking systems, Indian Railways has decided to make Aadhaar verification mandatory for booking train tickets. The move comes in response to growing complaints that Tatkal tickets are being rapidly booked in bulk using AI bots, leaving genuine passengers unable to secure tickets. While authorised agents face restrictions during Tatkal booking windows, loopholes have been alleged in this system, which allowed personal IDs to be exploited using automated systems. To counter this, the Ministry of Railways has directed the Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) to prioritise Aadhaar-verified accounts during the first ten minutes of Tatkal booking on the IRCTC website and mobile app.

Users must verify their Aadhaar number linked to their IRCTC account as part of this initiative. In the near future, Aadhaar will also be required to purchase tickets at physical counters. According to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, these measures aim to ensure tickets reach genuine passengers and eliminate unfair practices. Of the 13 crore registered IRCTC accounts, only about 1.2 crore have completed Aadhaar verification. As part of the clean-up, nearly 2.5 crore suspicious IDs were recently removed to strengthen the system.

How it benefits passengers
Currently, a user can book up to 12 monthly tickets through a standard IRCTC account without Aadhaar verification. This limit increases to 24 tickets if the Aadhaar number is verified. The IRCTC also allows passengers to maintain a `Master List'  to include details of co-travellers. Currently, Aadhaar verification is required only for one person on the master list. But moving forward, bookings will be allowed only for those co-travellers whose Aadhaar details have been verified.

Railways has warned passengers against relying on third-party platforms that claim to guarantee confirmed tickets. Officials have clarified that no external platform has the authority or capability to ensure confirmed bookings.

Aadhaar verification to be integrated with TTE systems
Meanwhile, Train Ticket Examiners (TTEs) have been instructed to verify if tickets are booked using genuine Aadhaar credentials. For this, they will be required to use the mAadhaar mobile app. The Aadhaar verification feature will soon be integrated into the tablets carried by TTEs. The new system will also enable them to verify not just passengers, but also onboard cleaning and catering staff.

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