Railway pass holders can now travel in a higher class on Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi trains by paying the fare difference between the class permitted on their pass and the class they choose, following a clarification issued by the Railway Board on October 30, 2026.
The facility will apply to holders of Privilege Passes, Post-Retirement Complimentary Passes and Widow Passes. It covers railway employees, retired railway employees and eligible widow pass holders who use these travel concessions.
Until now, the provision allowing passengers to travel above the class authorised on a railway pass by paying the fare difference was available for mail and express trains under the Railway Servants Pass Rules, 1986. The Railway Board has now clarified that the same provision applies to premium services, including Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi trains.
The clarification refers to Rule 3(X) of Schedule II of the Railway Servants Pass Rules, 1986. Under the provision, a pass holder does not have to purchase the full fare for the higher class. Instead, the passenger must pay the difference between the fare for the class authorised under the pass and the fare for the higher class selected.
The change is intended to expand travel choices for beneficiaries of the railway pass system, particularly on premium trains where seating and accommodation categories are structured differently from conventional mail and express services. The facility does not remove the requirement to hold a valid pass or pay the applicable fare difference.
To implement the clarification, the Railway Board has instructed the Centre for Railway Information Systems to make the required changes to the Passenger Reservation System and the e-pass module of the Human Resource Management System. Once the system changes are completed, eligible pass holders are expected to be able to book travel in higher classes through online channels or at reservation counters.
The decision was taken with the concurrence of the Finance Directorate of the Ministry of Railways. The timing for completion of the PRS and HRMS changes was not specified in the supplied report. Until the systems are updated, the availability of the higher-class booking option will depend on the revised reservation and pass-processing arrangements.
