Railways closes 2.5 crore IRCTC accounts

Attempt to prevent misuse of online ticket reservation system

New Delhi – Indian Railways has closed more than 2.5 crore Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) accounts to prevent misuse of the online ticket reservation system. The government has closed down the accounts after receiving information about the suspicious reservation system and fake accounts. This information was given in Parliament while replying to a question by Mr. A.D. Singh, Member of Parliament.

These accounts were causing major problems during Tatkal ticket reservations. It often seemed that all the tickets would get sold out within a few minutes of Tatkal reservations being opened. Brokers were booking all the tickets using bots (software robots). As a result, ordinary passengers could not book tickets. Now, the closure of these accounts has brought great relief to the passengers.

Important changes made by the Railways

Reserved tickets can be booked online or through computerized reservation systems on a first-come, first-serve basis. Currently, 89 percent of tickets are booked online. From July 1, 2025, only Aadhaar card verified users can book tickets under the Tatkal scheme through the IRCTC website or app. Brokers are prohibited from booking tickets during the first 30 minutes after the launch of Tatkal reservation.