Last-minute travelling is a very common practice in India. Passengers have even been known to knock on the ticket-window at railway stations for booking their ticket virtually at the last minute, however, planning for last minute travel also comes with hefty expenses, as charges for those Tatkal tickets are kept higher by IRCTC compared to normal ones. These spur of the moment decisions are usually sparked off by emergencies or even whims. At these times, the travellers may well not have enough cash to avail tickets. Looks like this problem of tatkal passengers may well have been heard by Indian Railways, as there are two portals now set up through it's online-portal, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp (IRCTC), where a train passenger can book a tatkal ticket on emergency basis, and make the payment for it later. So, this comes as a major relief for these passengers. 

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

A customer can book tickets on the IRCTC website, on the tatkal quote - the service which was only available for general reservation categories till now. One needs to note, that while booking the tatkal ticket, one must pay first via the standard online payment gateways before the IRCTC portal. 

The payment can be made through cash, debit card or credit card, if they opt for tickets to be delivered at their doorstep. 

Here's how you can make tatkal ticket booking and pay later. 

The facility is available on ePaylater which is powered by Arthashastra Fintech Pvt Ltd, or by Pay-On-Delivery (POD) powered by Anduril Technologies - an authorized payment provider of IRCTC. 

On ePaylater app requires a prior registration method along with KYC norms like PAN or Aadhaar details. 

After following the method, one can avail the purchase of tickets and payment later facility. It needs to be noted that, purchase medium must be done through e-tickets. Service is only applicable with IRCTC portal / Mobile App.

If ticket booked under POD facility is cancelled by applicant then in such a case, applicant has to bear the cancellation charges plus applicable taxes over and above service charges.

If any applicant in past has availed the facility under POD scheme and cancelled the ticket subsequently then applicant’s account shall be deactivated from the portal.

In future, if any such applicant wants to avail the facility under POD scheme in future then re-registration has to be done with a registration fee of Rs. 100/- plus applicable taxes.

Repayment for the credit facility availed under POD facility to be done through ENACH facility or any other Digital mode as acceptable to GHI.

By accepting and activating the digital mode of payment for the facilities availed under POD scheme, it is deemed that you have authorized the debit of your Bank Account towards amount due and Terms and Conditions thereof.

Once the tickets are booked, the passenger will receive them via email address or SMS. 

A customer will get 15-days period to make the payment of the tickets. However, in case of delay, a 36% transaction interest would be levied. And if you think of ignoring the late payment fee deadline, then a legal actions will be taken against you. 

As per reports, your account can also be deactivated. 

POD scheme is offered through a tie-up arranged by ATPL with GHI Infra LLP (GHI), where the facility is financed by GHI and ATPL is nowhere responsible for the acts / actions / decision making process of GHI. ATPL is acting as a channel for arranging the said facility thru’ GHI.

Key points to remember while making bookings

Tickets will be delivered on your door steps in case of Cash of Delivery as  payment option. The charges for delivery is as same as IRCTC I-ticket charges. It needs to be noted that, COD is allowed 5 days prior to the travel date. 

On completion of booking, the details would be available in the Booking History section on Bookmytrain.com. A passenger can book maximum four tickets under Tatkal quota. The members can be children or senior citizens who are traveling together.

The ticket window for Tatkal AC classes is open from 10 am to 10.30 am everyday, while for  Tatkal non-AC classes the window is opened  from 11 am to 11.30 am. All kinds of ticketing agents including IRCTC agents are debarred from booking non-Tatkal tickets for 30 minutes from the opening of bookings, that is from 8 am to 8.30 am for general classes.