The nation came to halt on the 22nd March or the day of “Janta Curfew” as popularly being marked now. Not everything comes as per plans and this was the same for many who had scheduled their travel itinerary already on account of various reasons. The holy month which would have marked the end of “Khar-maas” was about to end and the wedding bells were waiting round the corner for everyone. Indians settled abroad had already made their plans but were awe struck with the COVID-19 pandemic and successive lockdown measures. Since the day of so called “Janta Curfew”, the wheels of national transporter has came to halt. Many are speculating that the wheels would roll post the 14th of this month. But, Indian railways hasn’t opened up their cards on such decisions yet. Indian Railways has laid few amendments to its refund policies due to the pandemic and has assured its travellers to stay cam and updated on the same. Here’s everything that you need to know about the refund policies of your ticket bookings:
In General conditions, the refund rules remain the same. A fixed cancelation charge is deducted from the booking amount as mentioned below.
- AC Tier-3 Class / Executive Class: Rs 240
- AC Tier-2 Class / First Class: Rs 200
- AC Tier-3 / AC Chair Car / AC 3 Economy: Rs 180
- Sleeper Class: Rs 120
- Second Seating Class: Rs 60
Here’re the scenarios one needs to be acquainted with during COVID-19 pandemic situation:
- FOR IRCTC E-TICKETS: No need to cancel tickets for the trains canceled by Indian Railways. The Refund will be automatically granted and will reflect in your account after 2-7 business days of cancelation.
- FOR PRS COUNTER TICKET: Indian Railways has extended the time of cancelation of counter tickets till June 21st. Passengers’ can head to PRS counters to cancel their tickets. You will get full refund.
- Partial Refunds: There’re many cases where passengers have received a partial refund. In such a case, you needn’t worry. Railways will refund full amount subject to some rules to be followed by the passenger.
- Refund of balance amount by IRCTC on online tickets is fragmented in two parts:
- For the tickets canceled before 27th March 2020
- For the tickets canceled after 27th March 2020
It is to be noted that for the tickets canceled before 27th March; the balance refund for the same will be credited by the Indian Railways. So, passengers with canceled tickets and partial refund should not worry and wait for their refund.
For the tickets canceled after 27th March 2020, the national transporter will refund the full amount to the passenger in their account. For this, passengers don’t have to cancel the ticket on their own. Provisions for the same have already been made.
- Railway Counter Ticket Cancellation Online Due to Lockdown
IRCTC has given a feature of cancelation of PRS counter ticket via online method. One can log in to the IRCTC portal and choose to cancel PRS ticket online by entering the PNR number and date of journey. The passenger will receive a message and further he/she can contact the PRS counter and get their refund. However, it is suggested not to use this feature and wait for some time as the counter ticket can be canceled by June 21st. We would request the ticket holders to cross the lockdown period and then take steps to cancel their via PRS counter.
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How to check my refund status?
One can check their refund status on the official refund site of IRCTC. Also, it is advised to go through the official circular of the IRCTC for refund concerns during COVID-19 pandemic situation.
Contact Point for IRCTC Refund Requests
IRCTC has two customer care numbers on which ticket holders can contact and know their refund status. Apart from these numbers, there’re email ids to connect with.
Customer Care Numbers: 07556610661, 07554090600 (At this time of emergency, there’re only few customer care executives present to answer your query. So, call on these numbers only when you feel it as the last resort.)
For tickets booked through IRCTC: care@irctc.co.in
For Cancellation E-tickets: etickets@irctc.co.in
Indian Railways requests all its ticket holders to wait patiently as their refund will be granted by 21 June.