IRCTC Resolves Chhath Puja Ticket Booking Issues
IRCTC addresses technical glitches and slow speeds during the Chhath Puja ticket booking rush. Services are now back to normal.
The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has officially addressed the technical hurdles passengers faced while attempting Chhath Puja ticket booking during the recent festive period.
According to an official statement released on November 10, 2026, while the reservation portal remained functional throughout the period, users encountered significant delays, login failures, and performance degradation. IRCTC attributed these issues to an exceptionally high volume of simultaneous login attempts occurring during peak festive hours.
Why the Booking Delays Occurred
Technical challenges were particularly pronounced during the 8:00 AM Advance Reservation Period (ARP) opening window. The extreme surge in users resulted in slow processing speeds, heavy load errors, and 'Regret' status updates on both the official website and the mobile application.
Services Restored and Future Upgrades
IRCTC has confirmed that these technical disruptions were temporary, and e-ticketing services across all channels have since returned to normal operations. To better manage high-traffic periods in the future, the organization stated it is actively working on technology upgrades, infrastructure improvements, and process simplifications.
Managing the Festive Rush to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
The surge in demand was primarily driven by massive travel requirements to regions including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. In response to this festive rush, Indian Railways implemented several crowd management measures to ensure smooth passenger movement:
- Suspension of Platform Ticket Sales: To reduce congestion at major stations, such as those in Delhi and the NCR, platform ticket sales were temporarily suspended.
- Special Trains and Extra Coaches: The railways deployed festival special trains and added extra coaches to regular services.
- Vande Bharat Express: Special Vande Bharat Express trains were introduced to handle the increased passenger load.
- Parcel and Loading Restrictions: To prioritize passenger movement, authorities placed temporary restrictions on parcel bookings as well as loading and unloading operations at major railway terminals.