Passengers can change boarding station after chart is prepared, up to 30 minutes before departure

There is no guarantee about railway timings. Sometimes a train leaves the station on time, and at other times it runs hours late. Passengers are often troubled as a result. At times traffic or some other reason delays a traveller in reaching the station, and the fear is whether the train will be caught.

Most passengers believe that once the railway's final chart is prepared, nothing in it can be changed. That is not the case. Even after the chart is ready, the railway allows a passenger to change the boarding station.

Under railway rules, even if the first chart of your train has been prepared, there is no need to panic. You can change your boarding point up to 30 minutes before the train departs. The process is simple. First, go to the IRCTC mobile app. With its help, you can change your boarding station from home. The method helps avoid a last-minute rush.

Passengers should remember that the chance to change the boarding station is available only once, not repeatedly. If a station is changed in haste, it cannot be changed again. The new boarding station should therefore be chosen carefully.

It is also important not to board the train from the old station after changing it. Under this railway rule, a passenger who changes the boarding station and still boards from the old station can be fined. Once the station is changed, the passenger cannot board from the old one. Doing so is treated as a violation of railway rules. If a ticket examiner catches a passenger doing this, the passenger will be treated as travelling without a ticket and action will be taken accordingly.

The procedure is different for those who bought their ticket at the counter, that is offline, rather than booking online. Such a passenger must go to the railway station and fill in a paper form. On the basis of that form, the reservation officer will update the new railway station in the system.