Indian Railways ticket price hike: How much more will you pay from today
Indian Railways has increased train ticket prices for journeys over 215 km, effective December 26. Ordinary, non-AC, and AC classes see varied hikes, with no change for suburban services or short distances up to 215 km. The Ministry justifies the rise to balance operational sustainability and fare reasonableness, affecting major train services and longer routes.
New Delhi: The Ministry of Railways on Thursday officially issued a notification of increasing the price of ordinary class tickets by one paise per kilometer and two paise per kilometer for non-air-conditioned and air-conditioned (AC) categories of all trains for travel of more than 215 km.
The ministry announced on 21 December that passenger fares will be increased from 26 December. This is the second time in a year that the ministry has revised passenger rail fares. Earlier in July the rent was increased.
Justifying its decision, the ministry said that the purpose of making fares reasonable is to establish a balance between sustainability (of tickets) and stability of operations for passengers. The ministry said in a statement that under the revised fare structure, there is no change in the fares of suburban services and season tickets.
No Fare Increase for Suburban Services, Season Tickets
This includes both suburban and non-suburban routes. For ordinary non-AC (non-suburban) services, fares in Class II General, Sleeper Class General and First Class General have been rationalized in a graded manner.
It said that there is no increase in fares for 215 km of second class general, which will not affect the passengers travelling for short distances and daily journeys. Fare will be increased by Rs 5 for distances ranging from 216 km to 750 km. For trips of greater distances, the increase will be implemented in a phased manner — 10 rupees for distances ranging from 751 km to 1250 km, Rs 15 for distances from 1251 km to 1750 km and Rs 20 for distances from 1751 km to 2250 km.
Rajdhani, Shatabdi Fare Hike
The official notification states that existing basic fares of major train services including Tejas Rajdhani, Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto, Vande Bharat, Humsafar, Amrit Bharat, Tejas, Mahamana, Gatiman, Antyodaya, Garib Rath, Jan Shatabdi, Yuva Express, Namo Bharat Rapid Rail and general non-suburban services (except AC Memu/Demu, where applicable) have been approved It has been revised to suit the original fare.
Mail/Express trains: Ticket price increase has been rationalised at 2 paise per kilometre across Non-AC and AC classes, this includes Sleeper Class, First Class, AC Chair Car, AC 3-Tier, AC 2-Tier, and AC First Class. For a 500 km journey in non-AC Mail/Express coaches, passengers will pay only about Rs 10 extra.
"The revised fares are applicable only on tickets booked on or after 26 December 2025. Tickets booked prior to this date will not attract any additional charges, even if the journey is undertaken after the effective date. The fare list displayed at stations will also be updated to reflect the new fares effective from 26.12.2025," the official release stated.