The Indian Railways recently announced a fare hike, the second in 5 years. Find out all you need to know about the hike, including new fares, other changes, and more.

Overview
The Indian Railways recently announced a fare hike for second-class passengers on long-distance trains. Officials emphasised that the fare hike is relatively low, with an upper limit of 2 paise per kilometre.

New Fares
Type of Trains
Hike Amount
Second Class ordinary
50 paise for distances above 500 km.
AC classes
2 paise per kilometre
Mail/Express Train
1 paisa per kilometre

First class coaches fare will be Rs. 0.5 per kilometre. Fares for other categories, like suburban trains and monthly season tickets [MSTs], will remain the same.

Other Changes
Train reservation charts will now be prepared 8 hours in advance. Previously, they were prepared 4 hours in advance.

Another big change is that only users with a verified Aadhaar card can book Tatkal tickets. Users can also use other valid documents to verify their identity.

Type of Trains	Hike Amount
Second Class ordinary	50 paise for distances above 500 km.
AC classes	2 paise per kilometre
Mail/Express Train	1 paisa per kilometre

Hike Alert: Indian Railways increasing fares from this month!

Author: Ufaq Ahmed Ansari