Is IRCTC Next Generation eTicketing System Down?

If you're experiencing issues with IRCTC Next Generation eTicketing System, try these troubleshooting steps:

Basic Steps

• 1. Refresh and retry during off-peak hours. IRCTC's Next Gen system experiences extreme load during Tatkal booking windows (10:00–11:00 AM) and festival bookings. Try your transaction after 11:30 AM or late evening to avoid server throttling.
• 2. Clear your browser cache and cookies. The eTicketing portal relies heavily on session cookies. Go to your browser settings, clear cached images and files, then completely restart the browser before logging in again.
• 3. Verify your internet connection and disable VPN/proxy. IRCTC actively blocks known VPN IP ranges for security. Use a stable broadband or mobile hotspot without a VPN. Run a quick speed test — a minimum of 2 Mbps is recommended for the payment gateway.
• 4. Try a different browser or incognito mode. The portal works best on Chrome, Edge, or Firefox (latest versions). In incognito mode, browser extensions and old cache won't interfere with the login and booking flow.
• 5. Check the IRCTC server status via the page above. If the system is already flagged as down on this status page, your own device is not the problem — wait a few minutes and retry.

Intermediate Steps

• 1. Clear all IRCTC-specific app data if using the mobile website. On Android, go to Settings > Apps > Browser (Chrome/Edge) > Storage > Clear Cache and Clear Site Data. On iOS, go to Safari Settings and clear history and website data for irctc.co.in only.
• 2. Manually set your device time and timezone. The Next Gen eTicketing system uses server-side time for payment validation and seat locking. If your device clock is off by even 3–5 minutes, you will see "Session Expired" or "Invalid Timestamp" errors during payment.
• 3. Disable all auto-fill and password manager extensions. IRCTC's two-step login (username + password + captcha) often conflicts with autofill tools, causing a "Login Failed" loop. Temporarily disable these extensions and manually type your credentials.
• 4. For payment failures — use the 'Payment Gateway Retry' link only, not the browser back button. If your payment succeeds but the page shows an error, go to My Transactions > Payment History after 10 minutes. Never press "Back" or "Refresh" during the payment confirmation — this creates duplicate booking attempts. If you see a failed payment but money deducted, wait 3 hours — it auto-refunds via the bank.

Still stuck? If the IRCTC Next Generation eTicketing System remains inaccessible, unresponsive, or shows error pages after trying the above, the issue likely lies with their core railway booking servers. Please click the 'Report Outage' button on this Is It Down Bro? status page — that helps other users and triggers our monitoring to verify the outage in real time.