Written by Anish MondalDecember 15, 2025 05:44 PM IST 2 min readOn Monday, the Southern Railway zone made OTP verification mandatory for Tatkal bookings on 30 of its originating trains. (Image: Southern Railway)Indian Railways tatkal booking rules: Indian Railways (IR) has made tatkal ticket booking mandatory for selected trains to enhance convenience for regular passengers. This move is designed to curb the misuse of the tatkal system and ensure that genuine travellers have better access to high-demand tickets.It represents a significant step toward improving transparency, security and overall passenger experience in railway ticketing.Also Read | Indian Railways tatkal ticket booking: 10 reasons behind availability of more train ticketsIndian Railways tatkal booking rules updateNow, the Southern Railway (SR) zone has introduced mandatory OTP verification for tatkal ticket bookings on 30 originating trains. In a statement, the zonal railway said: “Southern Railway has expanded mandatory OTP verification for Tatkal bookings to 30 originating trains.Also Read | Rameshwaram–Dhanushkodi new rail line foundation stone laid by PM Modi in 2019 – why railways yet to start the projectThis measure enhances the security of ticketing at both PRS counters and online platforms, ensuring safer and more reliable passenger services.”IRCTC tatkal bookings: Mandatory OTP verification enabled on 30 trains originating from Southern RailwayOn Monday, the Southern Railway zone made OTP verification mandatory for Tatkal bookings on 30 of its originating trains. These trains connect to major destinations including Mysuru, Chennai Central, KSR Bengaluru, Coimbatore, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Chennai Egmore, Vijayawada, and others.Southern Railway launches Intra-Zonal “Coast-to-Coast” Parcel Express trainLast month, the Southern Railway launched its Intra-Zonal ‘Coast to Coast’ Parcel Express train. It is a dedicated, time-tabled logistics service designed to offer fast, reliable, and cost-effective parcel movement and logistics solution across Tamil Nadu and Kerala.Story continues below this ad“The unique feature of this service is earmarking of dedicated parcel coaches to each destination, ensuring organized parcel handling and management. The train accommodates a wide range of commodities including white goods, perishables, consumer products, and industrial materials. Its well-planned, direct connectivity supports uninterrupted logistics flow across important business hubs,” the SR said in a statement. Anish Mondal is a business journalist with over nine years of experience. He writes on diverse subjects such as Infrastructure, Railways, Roadways, Aviation, Politics, Market, Parliamentary affairs, Corporate earnings, General and International news etc. ... Read MoreStay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd