The cancellation of railway tickets has emerged as a major source of revenue for the Indian Railways, as revealed by data obtained through a Right To Information (RTI) query. The Railway Ministry disclosed that between 2021 and 2024, the railways garnered an impressive Rs 1,229 crores from cancelled waiting list tickets. This information was provided in response to an RTI application filed by activist Vivek Pandey from Madhya Pradesh, indicating a consistent upward trend in revenue generated through ticket cancellations over the years.
What did RTI reply reveal?
According to the RTI reply, in 2021, a total of 2.53 crore tickets on the waiting list were cancelled, resulting in earnings of Rs 242.68 crore for the Railways. In 2022, the number of cancelled tickets increased to 4.6 crore, with earnings rising to Rs 439 crore. Similarly, in 2023, the Railways earned Rs 505 crore from a total of 5.36 crore cancelled tickets. Even in January 2024 alone, the earnings amounted to Rs 43 crore from 45.86 lakh cancelled tickets.
During Diwali last year, spanning November 5 to November 17, the Railways witnessed a substantial surge in ticket cancellations, totalling 96.18 lakh cancellations. This included cancellations for confirmed, reservation against cancellation (RAC), and waiting list tickets. Consequently, the Railways recorded earnings of Rs 10.37 crore as 'total cancellation earning' from all categories of tickets during this period.
Railway tickets cancellation charges
Cancellation charges for railway tickets are determined by the class of travel and the timing of cancellation relative to the scheduled departure of the train. In cases where a confirmed ticket is cancelled more than 48 hours before the train's scheduled departure, flat cancellation charges will be deducted:
- Rs 240/- for AC First Class/Executive Class
- Rs 200/- for AC 2 Tier/First Class
- Rs 180 for AC 3 Tier/AC Chair car/ AC 3 Economy
- Rs 120/- for Sleeper Class
- Rs 60/- for Second Class.
- If an RAC/waitlisted ticket is cancelled then Rs 60 per passenger is deducted.
E-tickets on IRCTC
It should be noted here that e-tickets bought online via the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) come with a service charge, which remains non-refundable upon cancellation. The service charge amount can fluctuate between Rs 10 to 30, depending on the mode of payment, such as UPI, debit card, credit cards, net banking, and others.
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