The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Railways, has introduced significant user interface (UI) enhancements on its rail-ticket-booking website www.irctc.co.in and the IRCTC Rail Connect mobile application.

These improvements are aimed at providing a simplified, faster, and more intuitive ticket booking experience for millions of railway passengers. Simultaneously, IRCTC has strengthened systemic and administrative safeguards to curb misuse, prevent automated bookings through tools, and ensure fair access to Tatkal and Advance Reservation Period (ARP) tickets.

User Interface Enhancements-IRCTC Website (www.irctc.co.in)

Key enhancements include:

• A visually appealing lean, clean user interface with better loading and increased responsiveness.
• Menu options realigned for intuitive navigation.
• Rearrangement of Form Fields for ease of input.
• Removal of Captcha from the login screen for quicker access.
• Train list now sorted by “Departure Time” instead of “Duration”.
• Introduction of “Show/Hide Filter” for customized viewing.

Strengthening Tatkal& ARP Booking through Aadhaar Verification

To prevent misuse of the online booking system and curb potential fraudulent bookings in Tatkal ticket booking, the following measures have been implemented:

• Only Aadhaar Verified users are permitted to book tickets on the date of opening of Advance Reservation Period.
• Only Aadhaar Verified users are allowed to book Tatkal tickets.

Introduction of Aadhaar-based verification has effectively prevented the creation and operation of unauthorized user accounts acting as a safeguard against misuse, thereby ensuring fair allocation of Tatkal and tickets on the day of opening of Advance Reservation Period (ARP), significantly improving ticket availability for genuine passengers by enhancing transparency and reducing unfair booking practices.

Systemic Measures (CDN & Anti-BOT Technologies)

To further strengthen the robustness and reliability of the ticketing platform:

• A Content Delivery Network (CDN) has been implemented to offload static content and reduce direct traffic load on the servers.
• Advanced Anti-BOT Technology has been deployed to mitigate malicious and suspicious automated attempts on the system.

These measures help in filtering malicious traffic, improving server response time, and enhancing system performance for genuine and verified users.

Administrative & Anti-Fraud Measures

IRCTC has adopted comprehensive anti-fraud mechanisms to prevent unauthorized access and ensure seamless booking for legitimate passengers:

• 3.03 Crore suspicious user IDs deactivated during the year 2025.
• Frequent interception of substantial volumes of malicious traffic.
• 376 complaints lodged on the National Cyber Crime Portal pertaining to 3.99 lakh suspicious PNRs.
• 4.86 Crore suspicious user IDs placed under revalidation during 2025.
• 12,819 suspicious email domains blocked during 2025.

These measures have significantly strengthened the integrity of the online ticketing ecosystem.

IRCTC’s citizen-first transparent approach and strengthening of cybersecurity measures alongwith AADHAR based bookings are being viewed as measures to bring smiles to the faces of genuine railway passengers for whom it has now become easier to book Tatkal and ARP tickets, with the elimination of fake User IDs and implementation of the Anti-Bot technology.