IRCTC Special Trains Ticket booking online (List, Seat Availability, Price, fare, Route, Time, Date)
The central government has already implemented the Shramik Special Trains in India. These trains are operated to transport the stranded migrant labors from one state to their home states. However, ordinary people are also stuck in other cities. The central government realizes the plight of such people. It was stated that no passenger trains and vehicles will operate till the lockdown is active. But the central government, with the assistance of the respective state governments, has launched the IRCTC Special Trains project. These trains will assist the stranded people to get back to their native states. In this article, you will gather more information about these special trains. Apart from this, we will also tell you the step-by-step process of booking tickets from the authorized IRCTC website.
Table of Contents
Launch details of the project
| Name of the project | IRCTC Special Trains |
| Launched in | India |
| Monitored by | Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation |
| Target beneficiaries | People, stuck in other states |
| Main objective | Offering travel facilities |
| Ticket booking process | Online mode |
| Official portal | https://www.irctc.co.in/ |
| Number of special trains | 15 |
Important dates
| Activity | Date | Time |
| Online train ticket booking starts on | 11th may 2020 | 4:00 PM |
| Special trains will become operational from | 12th May 2020 | As per schedule |
Latest updates of train schedules
The Indian central government has finally decided to operate some passenger trains, before the lockdown is called off. However, experts are of the opinion that the lockdown period may be extended. Lack of transportation was a huge cause of concern for the people, stranded in other states, away from their families. Thus, on the 10th of May, 2020, the Indian Railways announced that special trains, carrying passengers will operate from the 12th of May, 2020. In this regard, the interested passengers will have to book their tickets online, on the IRCTC portal. The Railways is offering advance ticket booking for seven days. The online booking of tickets stated on the 11th of May, 2020. The trains will have limited stops, and social distancing norms will be followed while allocating seats.
Route list for the special trains
- New Delhi – Jammu Tawi
- New Delhi – Mumbai Central
- New Delhi – Bhubaneswar
- New Delhi – Secunderabad
- New Delhi – Ahmedabad
- New Delhi – Dibrugarh
- New Delhi – Howrah
- New Delhi – Thiruvananthapuram
- New Delhi – Agartala
- New Delhi – Bengaluru
- New Delhi – Bilaspur
- New Delhi – Madgaon
- New Delhi – Ranchi
- New Delhi – Patna
- New Delhi – Chennai
Guidelines to board these trains
- The central government and the Indian Railways have agreed that only those passengers, who do not possess any symptoms of Coronavirus infection, will be allowed to board these special trains. This measure has been taken to reduce the chances of viral infection spread.
- The officials of the Indian Railways have mentioned that all the passengers, boarding the special trains, will have to wear face masks. They will not be allowed to take off these masks for their safety, and safety of the fellow passengers.
- The Railways will not offer any discount on the price of the tickets.
- The facilities of premium Tatkal or Tatkal bookings will not be allowed during the lockdown period.
- The passengers will not receive the facility of making current bookings.
- If any passenger has concessional, complementary, or reimbursable train travel passes, then they will not be able to use these tickets for traveling in these special trains.
- It has been mentioned that the passengers will not be allowed to make mass ticket bookings through the online IRCTC website.
- If any person wants to cancel the train ticket, then he/she will get the facility till 24 hours, before the train is scheduled to leave. The person must log in on the official portal to make the cancellation.
- If any person opts for an online cancellation, then he/she will have to forego half of the total price of the ticket.
- The special trains will not charge any extra money for supply of cooked meals to the passengers.
- As the pantry carts will not be operating, the passengers will not get any food in these trains. For the convenience of these people, the Railways have decided that only packaged food and water bottle will be made available to the passengers.
- The Railways and the central government may make changes in the schedule of these trains, if deemed necessary.
- It is mandatory for all the passengers to download and install the Aarogya Setu App on their mobile phones before boarding the train.
How to book train tickets via online portal?
Official website –
The IRCTC had launched an online portal for the convenience of the passengers, some time back. All the stranded individuals, who want to book tickets for these special trains, must land on the IRCTC official portal by clicking on the Link.
Source and destination city selection –
When the home page opens, the individual will see an information box on the left hand side of the page. It is marled as “Book Your Ticket.” Here, the individual must select the source city, the destination, and the preferred date of travel.
Details of available trains –
After typing in the relevant details, the candidate needs to click on the blue button that is marked as “Find Trains.” It will take the applicant to another page, where he/she will get the details of the trains, which are leaving from the source city to the destination, on the selected date.
Booking train tickets –
After the person has selected the special train, he/she will get access to the ticket booking page. Here, the individual must mentioned the personal and contain details for booking these travel passes.
Payment –
Once the tickets have been selected, the applicant must pay for the tickets through online payment gateways.
Acknowledgement slip –
The site will bring up an acknowledgement slip after the online payment is made. It is a sign that the tickets have been confirmed. It is mandatory for the applicant to download and get a printout of this slip.
SMS notification –
The individuals, which have book special train tickets from the IRCTC portal, will also receive notifications about the train via SMS.
FAQ
Ans: Some of the 15 special trains will operate on a daily basis, while the others will be scheduled every week.
Ans: If you want details about the 15 special trains, then you must log in on the official website of IRCTC.
Ans: No. the facility of booking a special train ticket through an operator will not be allowed.
Ans: An interested applicant needs to get to the official IRCTC site and book the valid train tickets.
Ans: During the lockdown, the Indian Railways will not allow the booking of bulk tickets.
Ans: Yes. If the passenger wants, he/she can cancel the ticket. It must be done one day before the train is scheduled to leave.
Ans: If any person wants to cancel the ticket, then he/she needs to log in on the authorized IRCTC portal, and do the needful.
Ans: Yes. The passenger will be entitled to receive only 50% of the ticket price, if he/she opts for a cancellation.
Ans: No. These special trains will make only a few scheduled stops, before reaching the final destination. These details are also available on the IRCTC website.
Ans: When the passengers reach the station, the station in-charges will scan each individual with thermal scanners. If the passenger has any signs of COVID – 19 infection, then the person cannot board the train.
Ans: The Indian Railways website highlights that the passengers must reach the railway station around 90 minutes before the scheduled time.
Ans: No. The food and beverage stores, located at the railway stations will not remain open. Only a few stores, selling water and dry food will remain operational.
Ans: Most of the state governments will arrange special buses for the passengers. The people must come to a specific location. From there, they can board the buses. These buses will take the passengers to the station. If any passenger has access to private vehicle, then he/she can use that to get to the railway station.
Ans: When a person registers for the ticket, he/she will get instant confirmation. There is no waiting list for the passengers of this special train. So, there is no need for reconfirmation of the travel passes. If anyone wants to recheck the ticket details, then he/she can log in on the IRCTC website.
Ans: No. The Indian Railways decided that they will not give the passengers any pillows or bed sheets to eliminate the chances of Coronavirus contamination.
Ans: Yes. The Central Health Department has ordered the state government to disinfect the train compartments, before the train leaves the main station.
Ans: It has been decided by the Indian Railways that there will be no ticket checkers or TTEs present on these special trains. It is one of a kind decision that has been taken by the Indian Railways for the first time in the history of its operation.
Ans: Many are under the impression that all the passengers will be sent to quarantine centers, when they reach the destination. It is not so. However, the state governments need to follow the guidelines, which have been sent by the Central Health Ministry. Only those passengers will be sent to the quarantine facilities, which have one or more COVID – 19 symptoms. If any passenger passes the medical screening, then he/she will be allowed to go to their homes. However, these people need to stay in home isolation for the next 14 days. If they develop any signs of Coronavirus infection, then they must consult with the local medical officers.
The operation of these special trains will pave the path for easy commute of the stranded people. The Central Health Ministry has ordered the state governments that every passenger must be checked, when the train arrives at the destination. The details must be noted down. It is the responsibility of the state government to arrange special busses for transporting the passengers to their districts from the train stations. Stay tuned to our portal for more updates on this project.