Waiting Tickets: Big change in railway ticket booking from 1 May 2025: New order issued for those with waiting tickets

From May 1, 2025, many important changes affecting the daily routine of common people have come into effect across the country. Be it railway ticket booking, banking system or ATM transactions – these new rules have alerted passengers and bank customers. If you also travel by train or depend on ATM for everyday banking work, then it is very important for you to know what has changed now.

Big change in railway ticket booking: Now travelling with waiting ticket is difficult

Keeping in mind the convenience of passengers and crowd control, Indian Railways has made major changes in the rules related to ticket booking. According to the new guidelines implemented from May 1:

• Now, travel in sleeper and AC coaches will not be possible on waiting tickets.
• Waiting tickets will be valid only in general coaches, so that confirmed ticket holders can get a better experience.
• The Advance Reservation Period (ARP) has now been reduced from 120 days to 60 days. This means that you will now be able to book train tickets up to a maximum of two months in advance.
• There is also a possibility of change in refund rules related to ticket cancellation and increase in charges.

This will have a direct impact on planning of long distance travel, hence it has now become necessary to take extra caution while booking tickets.

ATM transactions are costly: Now every additional transaction will cost you heavily

Under the new instructions of the Reserve Bank of India, those who transact through ATMs will now have to loosen their pockets. Many major banks – like PNB, HDFC – have increased their transaction charges:

• Cash withdrawal charges: ₹23 per transaction (after free limit)
• Balance check: ₹7 per time (earlier ₹6)
• Non-financial transactions: ₹11 per transaction (like mini statement, PIN change, etc.)

Now customers will have to keep in mind the limit of free transactions they get every month, so that unnecessary charges can be avoided.

Merger of rural banks in 11 states: Now 'one state, one RRB' model

To further strengthen rural banking, the government has merged 15 Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) in 11 states into a new structure. After this change:

• The number of RRBs in the country will be reduced from 43 to 28.
• This step has been taken under the policy of 'One State, One RRB'.
• Customers will not face any interruption in banking services.
• The bank branches will remain the same, only the name and management of the bank will change.