By Sumaila Zaman

Copyright india

Indian Railways has made travelling across the country much easier and convenient for passengers. With provisions such as clean coaches on-board catering and excellent ticketing systems in place passengers can plan their journeys with ease and confidence. Different types of trains are available including express and superfast luxury and local depending on the passengers budget and mode of travel.
In India millions of passengers travel by train every day. Often passengers book travel tickets well in advance. But sometimes unforeseen circumstances prevent the passenger from travelling. This raises a common question: Can a train ticket be transferred to someone else? Most people would assume the answer is no. Railways however does have a special provision for this. Read this detailed article here.
Under the provision a name on a confirmed ticket can be changed. However there are certain conditions associated with this option and it is limited to close family members. It is also necessary to do it at a timely railway counter; otherwise the ticket will not be transferred to any other person.
According to the rules the ticket must be submitted at least 24 hours prior to departure in the case of requesting a name change. A name change is only allowed once per ticket. This facility provides comfort to travelers when they are unable to travel at the last minute; another eligible family member may proceed with the trip in their place.
Indian Railways permits this facility solely on confirmed tickets. No name change is allowed if the ticket is in waiting list (WL) or RAC status. The name can only be changed to close relatives like parent husband-wife siblings or children. Also a name change can also be requested by government employees with a written request for the name change from their department.
Its worth mentioning that this process cannot be performed online. The passenger needs to go to a railway reservation counter even if the ticket was booked online or offline. It is required to provide a printout of the ticket at the counter when the passenger fills the name-change application form to add the new traveller. ID proofs like Aadhaar card PAN card or Voter ID with photograph of both the original passenger and new passenger must also be submitted as well.
Once all necessary documents have been submitted the railway staff will update the name of the new passenger on the ticket either issuing a receipt or a new ticket. This process saves passengers from having to cancel their previous ticket and book a new one which allows them to avoid paying a cancellation fee.