The Indian Railways has rolled out a new rule requiring Aadhaar-based verification for passengers booking train tickets online through the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) website and mobile app during morning hours.
According to the Ministry of Railways, the change has been made to ensure that reservation benefits reach genuine passengers while curbing misuse of the system by touts or bulk bookers. As per the Indian Express report, officials stated that the move aligns with the government’s ongoing efforts to improve transparency, fairness and accountability in booking tickets.
Aadhaar verification is now mandatory during the 8-10 AM window
As per the latest guidelines, only Aadhaar-authenticated IRCTC users can book reserved train tickets between 8 AM and 10 AM on the first day of booking. The rule came into effect on October 28, 2025, the ministry stated.
However, there is no change in the timings of general reservation booking at computerised Passenger Reservation System (PRS) counters. The Railways also restated that authorised agents will continue to face a 10-minute restriction at the start of general ticket sales to discourage bulk bookings.
The Aadhaar rule builds on earlier changes to the Tatkal booking process. The Railways had already made Aadhaar verification compulsory for users booking Tatkal tickets for the first 30 minutes after the booking window opens.
These combined measures are meant to make the booking process more transparent and to ensure it is only for genuine passengers.
How to complete Aadhaar authentication on IRCTC
Passengers easily verify their Aadhaar details through their IRCTC account in the following steps:
1. Visit www.irctc.co.in and log in by using valid credentials.
2. Got to the ‘My account’ tab and then on ‘Authenticate User’.
3. Enter your Aadhaar Number and confirm details like date of birth, name, and gender to ensure they appear correctly. In case it differs from your Aadhaar details, use the edit option to correct it.
4. Select ‘Verify Details and Receive OTP’ to get a one-time password on your Aadhaar-linked phone number.
5. Fill in your OTP, agree to the consent displayed on screen, and click the submit button.
After successful verification, a confirmation screen will display showing that the Aadhaar authentication process has been completed.