The RAC (Reservation Against Cancellation) ticketing system on Indian Railways may be changed for passengers traveling on trains. Indian Railways is considering the possibility of abolishing this long-standing service. The main reason is that passengers who purchase RAC tickets pay the full fare but are not provided with a proper sleeping berth.
Under the RAC system, one side lower berth is shared by two passengers, forcing them to share sleeping space. RAC, which stands for Reservation Against Cancellation, is part of the old railway system. According to this system, passengers are allowed to travel on the train, but they are not allocated an entire seat. Nevertheless, they are obliged to pay the same amount as for a confirmed ticket. Questions arise about the feasibility of charging the full price if the passenger does not receive a proper sleeping place.
According to sources, the Ministry of Railways is studying this system. The railway considers it unfair to charge the full fare from a passenger who is not provided with enough sleeping space. With an RAC ticket, two passengers occupy one side lower berth: during the day it is used as a seat, and at night both passengers are forced to sleep on the same surface. In such conditions, it is difficult for passengers to find a comfortable spot. Furthermore, it becomes difficult for the Ticket Examiner (TTE) to arrange an alternative seat if there are no vacant seats on the train.
The issue of charging the full fare to RAC passengers was also raised before a parliamentary committee. The committee questioned the existing railway practice and recommended a review of it. The committee asserts that the rules regarding charging the full fare to passengers who are not allocated separate full berths must be re-examined. That is, the railway should assess how justified it is to charge the full fare to passengers traveling in a shared space. Following this recommendation, discussions about maintaining or changing the long-standing RAC system have intensified.
RAC stands for Reservation Against Cancellation. It is a railway ticket status where the passenger may not be allocated an entire seat but is allowed to travel in a reserved coach. It can be seen as an intermediate state between a confirmed ticket and a waiting list. Passengers with waiting list tickets usually wait for their ticket confirmation to board the reserved coach. Meanwhile, passengers with RAC tickets can travel in their assigned spot. If a passenger's confirmed ticket is cancelled, the vacated seat may go to the RAC passenger. Thus, an RAC ticket can be upgraded to a full seat upon cancellation and availability of a seat. However, this depends solely on the ticket cancellation and seat availability.
The RAC system was introduced when railway reservations were mainly done manually. At that time, it was difficult to quickly find out about cancelled tickets or available seats. Therefore, the railway introduced the RAC system to utilize last-minute cancellations and provide the opportunity to travel to the maximum number of passengers. This system allowed those who could not get a confirmed seat to travel on the train. Later, the railway ticketing system became computerized. This simplified the process of detecting cancelled tickets, vacant seats, and providing full seats to RAC passengers. Despite this, the RAC service continued to operate.
This is not the case currently. The Ministry of Railways is considering abolishing the RAC system, but no final decision has been announced yet. Consequently, passengers with RAC tickets can travel in reserved coaches just as before, according to current rules. If the railway decides to abolish or change this system in the future, it may affect ticket booking rules and seat allocation. For now, passengers need to await an official announcement from the railway.
