Next time when you cancel your confirmed railway ticket, you will be charged twice the present amount. The ticket cancellation charges have been doubled by the Indian railways. The move is aimed at getting genuine passengers confirmed train tickets. The changes have been recommended to the refund rules of Indian Railways. The new refund rules state that the passenger has to file refund at least four hours before the departure and no amount will be refunded once the train is departed. The new rules will come into force by November 12.
The cancellation charges for second class confirmed ticket were Rs.30. The user had to file refund request 48 hours before the departure. The new rule has made cancellation fees Rs.60 and Rs.180 for second class and Third tier AC class respectively. The cancelation charges for second tier AC class has been increased to Rs.200 from Rs.100, while sleeper class passenger have to pay Rs.120 for cancellation.
In the case of reservation against cancellation (RAC) and waitlisted ticket, the passenger has to file refund request at least half an hour before the train departure. The ticket won’t be eligible for the refund otherwise. The railway official informed that the changes in the rules are aimed at preventing the misuse of reservation service.
Currently, railways charges 25 percent of ticket amount as a cancellation fee if the ticket is cancelled between 48 to 12 hours before the train departure. The amount has been increased to 50 percent now if the passenger cancels the ticket between 12 to 4 hours before the departure. Railways are planning to set up extra counters to enable speedy refund.
