Indian Railways to have upgraded reservation system from August: How it will change booking

The Indian Railway's Passenger Reservation System (PRS), launched in 1986, is all set to be upgraded in August this year. The railway's internet booking services were launched in 2002. Now, 88% of ticketing is done online through platforms like the IRCTC website and app, and the RailOne app, launched last year. The Railways is reportedly investing around ₹1,000 crore to revamp the reservation system. The upgraded system is also expected to handle up to 1.5 lakh tickets per minute. Currently, it is around 25,000 to 32,000 tickets per minute. 

How will it change booking
The 40-year-old system is to be replaced by an AI-powered platform. Interestingly, the upgraded system will have the following:
a) Reservation charts would be prepared at least 10 hours before departure, unlike the last-minute ones now. 
b) AI-enabled predictions of waitlist ticket confirmation with 94% accurancy.
c) Aadhaar verification will be increasingly prioritised, and non-Aadhaar-verified accounts can face delayed access.
d) The payment process will become faster.
e) The chances of sessions expiring are expected to reduce. 

The RailOne app
Highlighting the utility of the newly introduced RailOne mobile app, the Railway ministry said that it is rapidly gaining popularity among passengers. "It was launched in July last year. In less than a year, it has recorded over 3.5 crore downloads across the country," it stated. "One of the biggest reasons for its popularity is that the app not only provides all railway-related information to the common man but also resolves complaints related to ticketing and other services," officials stated. 

The ministry informed that every day, 9.29 lakh tickets are booked through this app across the country, including 7.2 lakh unreserved tickets and 2.09 lakh reserved tickets. "Unreserved tickets also include platform tickets. The RailOne app is widely appreciated on both Android and iOS platforms," the press note said. "It has been downloaded 3.16 crore times from the Google Play Store and 33.17 lakh times on Apple devices," it added.
(With PTI inputs)