New Delhi, May 7 (IANS) The government on Thursday said the transition of trains to an upgraded passenger reservation system will begin in August, with Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw directing officials to ensure a seamless shift without causing inconvenience to passengers.

The announcement came during a review meeting held at Rail Bhawan, where the minister assessed preparedness for migrating from the existing 40-year-old reservation system to a modern, technology-driven platform.

The current reservation system, originally introduced in 1986, has undergone incremental changes over the decades.

However, it is now being completely overhauled with significantly enhanced capacity and advanced features to meet growing passenger demand.

“Started in 1986, this system has undergone several minor changes over the past 40 years,” the Ministry of Railways said.

“However, now it has been completely overhauled, and its capacity has been significantly expanded using state-of-the-art technology,” the ministry added.

It highlighted that Indian Railways has steadily embraced digital transformation since the launch of internet-based ticketing in 2002.

Today, nearly 88 per cent of ticket bookings are made online, the ministry added.

A key driver of this transformation is the RailOne mobile application, which has rapidly gained traction since its launch in July last year.

The app has already recorded over 3.5 crore downloads and offers a wide range of integrated services, including ticket booking, cancellations, refunds, and real-time train updates.

One of its standout features is an AI-based prediction system that estimates the probability of waitlisted tickets getting confirmed.

Introduced earlier this year, the feature has significantly improved accuracy from 53 per cent to 94 per cent, enhancing user confidence.

The app also provides services such as live train tracking, platform and coach information, complaint resolution through Rail Madad, and even onboard food ordering with seat delivery.

Currently, around 9.29 lakh tickets are booked daily through the platform, including both reserved and unreserved categories.

Reaffirming the importance of railways as a lifeline for millions, the government noted that Indian Railways continues to subsidise passenger travel heavily.

In 2024–25 alone, subsidies amounted to Rs 60,239 crore, translating to an average fare discount of 43 per cent for passengers.

–IANS

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