As India gears up for Diwali, Chhath Puja, and Dhanteras 2025, Indian Railways has rolled out comprehensive festive travel regulations for passengers at key stations in Delhi, Mumbai, and Gujarat. The move is aimed at ensuring safe, smooth, and efficient journeys amid the high-volume seasonal rush, with a combination of restricted platform access, ticketing changes, safety advisories, and discounts.
To manage crowding during peak festive travel, the sale of platform tickets will be temporarily suspended at major railway hubs. In Delhi, Northern Railway stations including New Delhi, Delhi Junction, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Anand Vihar, and Ghaziabad will enforce this from October 15 to October 28, 2025. In Mumbai, Bandra Terminus and stations in the Mumbai division such as CSMT, Dadar, LTT, Thane, Kalyan, and Panvel will follow similar restrictions from October 15 to October 31. Gujarat stations including Vapi, Surat, and Udhna will also implement temporary restrictions.
Ahead of the festival season, Indian Railways has issued a strict advisory against carrying inflammable or hazardous items on trains. Passengers are prohibited from transporting firecrackers, petrol, diesel, kerosene, stoves, gas cylinders, and matchboxes. Violators face penalties including fines up to ₹1,000 or imprisonment up to three years, reinforcing safety amid increased festive travel. The advance reservation period for train tickets remains at 60 days, down from 120 days previously. Passengers are encouraged to link their Aadhaar numbers with IRCTC accounts, which is mandatory for accessing peak-time booking slots and Tatkal ticket reservations. Tatkal bookings now require Aadhaar-based OTP authentication both online and at PRS counters, with timing restrictions for authorised agents to prevent bulk bookings.
To encourage smoother passenger flow, Indian Railways has introduced a 20% rebate on return tickets booked within the same journey class and Origin–Destination pair under the “Festival Round Trip Scheme.” Onward journeys booked between October 13 and 26, and return journeys between November 17 and December 1, are eligible. This scheme applies to confirmed bookings across all train classes except Flexi-fare trains, aiming to incentivise planned and efficient travel.Officials emphasise that these measures are designed to streamline festive travel while maintaining safety and accessibility. By combining ticketing reforms, crowd management, and financial incentives, Indian Railways aims to ensure passengers experience smoother, safer, and more predictable journeys during India’s busiest travel period of the year.
