Indian railways is finally giving ears to the public grievances about the 8am-9am blackout. IRCTC has proposed a temporary solution to the tatkal tickets being sold out within minutes after bookings open.
IRCTC will be implementing a time bound ban for e-ticket agents between 8am-9am for tatkal bookings everyday. Also, the 8am-9am slot on opening day of advanced booking will be closed for agents. The solution will be tested temporarily and might be implemented permanently.
Though the fact that someone is listening is appreciated but banning is certainly not a solution. There are many who can get tickets booked through agents only as booking centers are too far and internet literacy is low.
There have been allegations that the public servers are temporarily switched off during the said time, IRCTC should look to scrutinize the whole system for such loopholes.
Anyways, hope their is some relief from this.
Who stands to gain? Netizens. And OTAs?
IRCTC had also proposed to keep online bookings open for 23 hours.
Recommended: Review of IRCTC’s New Interface | IRCTC Transaction Report : 52% Jump in 1 year, 23% Failure Rate
[Naman is a startup enthusiast and has worked with couple of Indian startups as Product Manager. He is the founder of FindYogi]
