Indian Railway Quota List
Categories of Reservation Quotas in Indian Railways
With a view to cater to requirements of different categories of passengers served by Indian Railways, available reserved accommodation is distributed broadly under following types of reservation quotas:
| S.No. | Quota | Available for |
| 1 | General | General Public |
| 2 | Tatkal | General Public |
| 3 | Premium Tatkal | General Public |
| 4 | Parliament House | Hon’ble Members of Parliament (Sitting and Former) |
| 5 | Ladies | Female passenger travelling alone or in a group of female passengers |
| 6 | Senior Citizen | Combined quota for senior citizens, female passengers above 45 years & pregnant women |
| 7 | Foreign Tourist | Foreigners |
| 8 | Defence | Defence Personnel |
| 9 | Roadside | General Public |
| 10 | Pooled | General Public |
| 11 | Cancer Patient | Cancer Patients |
| 12 | RAC (Reservation Against Cancellation) | General Public |
| 13 | Physically Handicapped | Divyangjan |
| 14 | Duty Pass | Serving / retired Railway employees travelling on Duty / Privilege/ Post retirement complimentary passes etc. in specified trains |
| 15 | Railway Employees | Designated Railway employees travelling on Duty in trains |
| 16 | Yuva | Unemployed persons between the age of 15 & 45 |
| 17 | Emergency | Urgent travel requirement of High Official Requisition (HOR) holders, Members of Parliament, and general public |
While booking reserved tickets through the website of Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation(IRCTC), passengers can book tickets under General Quota, Ladies Quota, Foreign Tourist Quota, Premium Tatkal Quota, Tatkal Quota, Senior Citizen Quota, and Physically Handicapped (Divyangjan) Quota. In addition to the above quotas, accommodation can also be allotted under Reservation Against Cancellation(RAC) & Pooled Quota while booking reserved tickets through website of IRCTC. These reservation quotas constitute approximately 94% of total reserved accommodation available on Indian Railways, which can be booked both through internet as well as through computerised Passenger Reservation System (PRS) of Indian Railways. To avoid any misuse, this facility is generally not extended for those quotas which require prior physical verification of documents. However, recently this facility has been extended to persons with disability, Press correspondents and Defence Personnel. Extension of such facilities to different categories of passengers is a continuous and ongoing exercise.
This information was given by the Minister of State of Railways, Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
Source: PIB
Here’s the updated list of reservation quotas offered by Indian Railways and IRCTC for reserved tickets (note: some quotas are accessible only via PRS counters and require specific eligibility):
Indian Railways Reservation Quotas (System-Wide)
According to official sources like the Passenger Reservation Enquiry portal and PIB releases, here are the quotas Indian Railways maintains:
- GN – General Quota (Open to all passengers)
- LD – Ladies Quota (Women traveling alone or with young children)
- HO – Headquarters / High Officials Quota
- DF – Defence Quota (Armed Forces personnel)
- PH – Parliament House Quota (Current/former MPs and officials)
- FT – Foreign Tourist Quota (Foreign nationals / NRIs)
- DP – Duty Pass Quota (Railway staff on official duty or with privilege entitlement)
- TQ – Tatkal Quota (Sudden travel needs)
- PT – Premium Tatkal (Dynamic fare based, short-notice travel)
- SS – Senior Citizen (Female 45+ / Male 60+ / Pregnant Women)
- HP – Physically Handicapped (Divyangjan) Quota
- RE – Railway Employees on Duty
- GNRS – General Quota Road-Side (Originating from a specified intermediate station)
- OS – Out-Station Quota
- PQ – Pooled Quota (For travel between short, popular stretches)
- EM – Emergency Quota (Officials, emergencies, HOR holders – newly redefined in 2025)
- RAC – Reservation Against Cancellation (For ticket holders allowed to board without a confirmed berth)
- YU – Yuva Quota (Unemployed youths aged 15–45)
- LB – Lower Berth Quota (Elders, pregnant women, specially allocated lower berths)
- Cancer Patient Quota (Less commonly used – for patients undergoing treatment)
Quick Lookup Table
| Quota Code | Description |
|---|---|
| GN | General public |
| LD | Ladies |
| HO | High Officials / HQ |
| DF | Defence personnel |
| PH | Parliament House officials |
| FT | Foreign Tourists / NRIs |
| DP | Duty Pass (staff) |
| TQ | Tatkal (urgent booking) |
| PT | Premium Tatkal (dynamic pricing) |
| SS | Senior Citizens / Pregnant Women |
| HP | Divyangjan (physically handicapped) |
| RE | Railway Employees on duty |
| GNRS, OS, PQ | Road-side, Out-station, Pooled quotas |
| EM | Emergency Quota for urgent government/travel needs |
| RAC | Reservation Against Cancellation |
| YU | Youth Quota (unemployed 15–45 years) |
| LB | Lower Berth quota |
| Cancer | Cancer Patients (special) |
Insights & Usage
- These quotas help accommodate the diverse needs of different passenger segments efficiently.
- While quotas like GN, TQ, PT, LD, SS, HP, and FT are available during booking on IRCTC and PRS, others (e.g., Emergency, HO, Cancer Patient) are limited to in-person PRS requests with supporting documents.
- A newly updated Emergency Quota (EM) has been rolled out in 2025, with revised booking procedures to enhance operational effectiveness.
Need help with booking strategies—like counters most useful for certain quotas, online accessibility, or document requirements? I’d be happy to assist!