There is a big relief news for railway passengers. Indian Railways has now started the facility of online ticket cancellation for tickets purchased from the railway counter. Announcing this initiative, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that now passengers will not need to go to the station to cancel their tickets. This step will save the time and effort of lakhs of train passengers across the country.

Minister Vaishnav said that this facility will be very convenient for the passengers. Earlier one had to go to the station to cancel the counter ticket, but now this work can be done sitting at home. For online cancellations, passengers will have to use the IRCTC website or mobile app. For this, the PNR number of the ticket and other necessary information will have to be entered. After cancellation, the refund process will also be completed online. This new facility will save both time and effort for the passengers.

How to cancel offline tickets online
On Friday, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that passengers who buy physical tickets from the ticket counter can now cancel them online by visiting the IRCTC website or calling 139. However, they will still have to go to the reservation center to get a refund. This issue was raised by BJP MP Medha Vishram Kulkarni. She had asked whether passengers with waiting tickets purchased from the counter, instead of e-tickets, need to cancel their tickets by going to the station before the departure of the train.

He said that under normal circumstances, PRS counter tickets can be cancelled online through the IRCTC website or by calling 139 within the prescribed time limit. As stated in the Railway Passengers (Ticket Cancellation and Refund of Fare) Rules 2015. To get a refund, the original PRS counter ticket will have to be submitted at the reservation counter, as was done earlier.

Counter Ticket Cancellation Rules

– Online cancellation is valid only if a valid mobile number is provided at the time of booking.

– Cancellation and refund of PRS counter tickets are valid under normal circumstances but not in case of train delay or cancellation.

– Online cancellation for fully confirmed tickets can be done up to 4 hours before departure.

– Online cancellation for RAC/Waitlisted tickets can be done up to 30 minutes before departure.

– Refund collection rules will be the same as mentioned above.

– Passenger details (name, age, gender, booking status, current status) and journey details will be displayed on the website.

– Once the passenger confirms, the entire cancellation of PNR will be done and will be marked as “Cancelled But Not Refunded” in the system. Seat/Berth will be released and the refund amount will be displayed on the website.

– Privilege/Duty Pass/PTO/Complimentary Pass tickets can be cancelled online. Those who are pass holders will have to visit the counter for re-validation if required.

– Normal cancellation charges will apply on PTO tickets issued at 1/3rd of the total basic fare. Since cancellation charges may be higher than the ticket price, passengers can choose whether to cancel the PTO ticket online or not.

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