Indian Railways PRS

Indian Railways is set to launch its most significant upgrade to the Passenger Reservation System in nearly four decades, with a transition beginning in August 2026 to modernize online bookings and address peak-hour strains. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw reviewed preparations during a meeting on May 7 at Rail Bhawan in New Delhi, directing officials to ensure no disruptions for passengers during the shift from the system introduced in 1986.

The overhaul, valued at around 1,000 crore, incorporates state-of-the-art technology and AI-driven features to handle surging demand. Officials noted the current platform struggles with high traffic, particularly during Tatkal bookings, festival rushes, and holidays, leading to server crashes and payment issues. Nearly 88 to 89 percent of India's daily ticket bookings now occur online, prompting the need for enhanced capacity to process up to 1.25 lakh bookings and 40 lakh enquiries per minute.

At the core of recent digital advancements is the RailOne mobile app, launched in July 2025, which has surpassed 3.5 crore downloads. The app integrates services including reserved and unreserved ticket bookings, cancellations, refunds, platform...