New Delhi: To clear the rush of passengers travelling to Allahabad during the period of Mahakumbh next year, railways have decided to extend the window for buying unreserved tickets to 15 days from the current three days on the railway ticketing app. This facility is only available to travel to 12 stations in Allahabad. In a circular, railways have said that it was anticipating a huge rush during the event and to release some of the pressure from mela stations, it has decided to enhance the period of purchase of “reverse” tickets during the event. “If a passengers purchases an unreserved return ticket through UTS app from any station on Indian railways for journey to any one of the 12 stations in Allahabad region serving the Mahakumbh Mela, the return ticket shall be allowed to be booked up to 15 days in advance excluding the date of journey,” it said.
This means that if a passenger at Nagpur wishes to purchase ticket to any station in Allahabad mela area and back, he can purchase the same 15 days in advance. No refund shall, however be allowed on such return tickets.
This facility will however be allowed for tickets purchased on or after January 11, 2019 up to March 2019. Passengers can purchase unreserved tickets through the UTS app three days in advance (excluding the day of journey) for journey of 200 km and above.
The 12 stations where this facility can be availed are - Allahabad Junction, Allahabad City, Naini, Subderganj, Rambag, Prayag Ghat, Daraganj, Phaphumau, Jhusi, Vindhyachal, Chheoki and back. Railways have made massive plans for the event. Projects worth more than Rs 700 crore are underway at Allahabad in preparation for the mela which will begin on January 15, 2019.
Here’s how to book unreserved train ticket from UTS App:
1. Download the UTS app from the Play Store. The app is available for Android, IOS and Windows phones. The app has been developed by Railways’ in-house developer Centre for Railway Information Systems(CRIS). You will see the name of the developer, CRIS, below the app name. So don’t fall prey to fake logos and similar names in the Play Store.
2. If you are not already registered, please opt for ‘New Registration’. Fill your mobile number, name, set a password and then your date of birth.
3. After successful registration, you will receive an one-time password (OTP). UTS will automatically read the OTP. After that, the app will send you back to the homepage. Login using your mobile number and the password you have just set.
4. After you login, a vertical list of options, including ‘Book Ticket’. ‘Cancel Ticket’, ‘Booking History’ and others will show up on your screen.
5. Once you click on the ‘Book Ticket’ four options will appear on your screen.
- Normal Booking
- Quick Booking
- Platform Ticket
- Season Ticket
First-time users should opt for ‘Normal Booking’ as the ‘Quick Booking’ is for commuters who already have set up their favourite routes.
6. When you open ‘Normal Booking’, you will have to compulsorily switch on your location services.Then the app will filter the stations based on your location and show the results accordingly. Select your source and destination station. The app will show you available routes. Post the selection of the route, fill the details.
7. The default payment method is Rail Wallet, but once the app detects you have zero balance, it offers you other payment options. The default payment aggregators available on the platforms are PayTM, MobiKwik and Freecharge. Finally, enter your debit or credit card details and once you receive the confirmation you are free to commute anywhere in the country.