Cancelling train tickets to be just a phone call away

Passengers can dial 139 giving confirmed ticket details to receive an OTP to claim refunds

Come April and cancelling a confirmed train ticket would only be a phone call away.

Indian Railways is set to launch a facility next month for the hassled passengers who find it hard to reach its counters within the stipulated time to cancel their confirmed tickets and claim refund.

"One has to dial 139 giving details of the confirmed ticket for cancelling it and the sender will get a one-time password (OTP). Passenger has to reach the counter the same day and reveal the OTP to claim refund," said a senior Railway Ministry official.

After the change in refund rules, a lot of passengers are now finding it difficult to reach counters to cancel the reserved tickets within the stipulated time and as a result they are losing money.

According to the new refund rules, railways has doubled the ticket cancellation charge with the aim of helping genuine passengers get confirmed tickets.

"The refund rules were revised to discourage touts and ticketing agents who engage in black marketing of tickets," said the official, adding "however, it has also resulted in inconvenience in some genuine cases. So we are now providing the 139 facility for cancellation."

Coming to the aid of harried passengers, railways will launch the cancellation facility through 139 service so that one does not have to rush to the counter to cancel confirmed tickets.

The tickets which are booked online can be cancelled on the ticketing websites. The 139 facility is for those who bought tickets from counters.

The software is ready and the facility is likely to be formally launched in the second week of April.