When we book a train ticket, we encounter several abbreviations we need to familiarize ourselves with. The Central Railways information system maintains a record of the passenger’s information through these abbreviations. Many passengers are perplexed by codes such as CNF, WL, RSWL, RAC, PQWL, and GNWL. If we are going to travel, we must understand the significance of these railways abbreviations.
What exactly does an abbreviation mean?
An abbreviation is a shorter form of a word used to define the word in a simpler or shorter form. Accommodation, for example, is abbreviated as accomm.
Abbreviations for Indian Railways:
1. What does GNWL mean?
General Waiting List: GNWL is the most common waiting list, and tickets in GNWL are allotted when a passenger begins their journey from the train’s source station or a railway station near the starting station. Tickets on the GNWL waiting list have the best chance of being confirmed since the majority of seats in the train are allocated to be reserved from the source station and therefore get the most cancellations.
2. What does CNF mean?
Although the passenger receives a full berth for the travel, he may not get berth information even if his ticket is verified. This is due to the TTE manually allocating berths for this class during chart creation.
3. What does RC (RAC) mean?
It is an abbreviation for Reservation Against Cancellation. Passengers with RAC tickets often receive a confirmed seat when the chart is generated before the train’s departure. If a person does not receive a definite berth, the Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) will normally assign them half a seat, which means two people will share a berth (in this case, the TTE assigns the seats which were canceled after the chart was prepared).
4. What does RQWL mean?
RQWL refers to the Request Waiting List. If a ticket is about to be booked from one intermediate stop to another and isn’t protected by the general quota, remote location quotas, or pool quota, the demand for the ticket may be placed on a Request Waiting List (RQWL).
5. What does RQWL mean?
It stands for Pooled Quota Waiting List. PQWL is allotted if a passenger begins their travel at the source station or another intermediate station of the train but ends it at some intermediate stop before the destination point of the train. There is just one Pooled Quota for the whole train length, which all little en-route stations share; hence there are extremely few possibilities of confirmation.
6. What does RSWL mean?
RSWL stands for Roadside Station Waiting List. These tickets are given for tickets purchased from the source station to the roadside stops along the route. They are not restricted by distance and are the least likely to be verified.
7. What does TQWL (previously CKWL) mean?
Tatkal Waiting List: TQWL is assigned when a ticket is purchased under the Tatkal Scheme, and all seats designated for tatkal booking are filled. Unlike other quotas, Tatkal tickets are instantly confirmed and do not go through RAC status. Because the general waiting list (GNWL) is chosen over the tatkal waiting list (TQWL) during chart compilation, waitlisted seats are less likely to be confirmed.
8. What does PNR mean?
PNR stands for passenger name record, a 10-digit unique number produced when a passenger orders a railway ticket online or in person. Even when booking in bulk, a single PNR number can retain the information for up to six people.
9. What does CAN mean?
This indicates that the seat of the passenger has been canceled.
10. What does PQ mean?
PQ stands for Pooled Quota. A few tiny stations usually share a pooled quota. Normally, there is just one Pool Quota for the whole train route. Passengers traveling from the source station to a station less than one mile from the train’s destination, from an intermediary station to the destination, or between two intermediate stations qualify for the Pool Quota.
11. What does RLGN mean?
RLGN stands for Remote General Location waiting list. RLGN is an alternative for RLWL. It is designated as RLGN after booking tickets under the RLWL quota.
Abbreviation for Trains
|
S.No. |
Abbreviation | Stands For |
|
1. |
DQ |
The Deccan Queen |
|
2. |
Exp |
Express Train |
|
3. |
Raj |
Rajdhani Express |
|
4. |
JJ |
Jaynati Janta Expres |
|
5. |
AP |
Andhra Pradesh Express |
|
6. |
Pass/ Pgr |
Passenger Train |
|
7. |
Cantt |
Cantonment |
|
8. |
Mxd. |
Mixed Train |
|
9. |
POW |
Palace on Wheel |
|
10. |
Jn |
Junction |
|
11. |
KK |
Karnataka Kerala Express |
| 12. | GT |
Grand Trunk Express |
Abbreviation for Accommodation Class
|
S.No. |
Abbreviation |
Expansion |
|
1. |
1A |
1st Class- Air Conditioned |
|
2. |
2A |
2nd Class- Air Conditioned |
|
3. |
3A |
3rd Class- Air Conditioned |
|
4. |
2S |
Second Seater |
|
5. |
SL |
Sleeper Class |
|
6. |
FC |
First Class |
|
7. |
EC |
Executive Chair Car |
|
8. |
CC |
Chair Car- Air Conditioned |
|
9. |
VC |
Vistadom Chair Car |
|
10. |
EA |
Executive Anubhuti Class |
|
11. |
3E |
3rd Air Conditioned Economy Class |
|
12. |
VS |
Vistadom Non AC Class |
Rules for Railway Reservation
- You can book 6 persons on a ticket for General Quota reservations. Only four people per ticket are permitted for Tatkal reservations.
- IRCTC customers can only book 6 tickets per ID per month. Travelers who have verified their Aadhaar verification can buy 12 tickets per ID per month.
- Reservations are accepted until the first chart is made, which is normally 4 hours before the train’s scheduled departure.
- Some trains offer current reservations, which means you may book unoccupied seats after the initial chart preparation.
Railway Reservation Auto-Upgrade
Auto upgradation is a feature that allows waitlisted customers who have paid the full fee to fly in a higher class at no additional cost. You must select auto upgradation at the time of your reservation, and you will be promoted to a higher class only if tickets in that class are available.
Only one class above your initial travel class is automatically upgraded. That is, if you have a sleeper class waiting for a ticket, you will be promoted to 3 AC. Passengers having waitlisted tickets for three AC classes or two AC classes would be upgraded to two AC classes or one AC class, accordingly.
Conclusion
We have covered all the most frequently used abbreviations in this article. We hope you’ve got your answers. You can explore more abbreviations on the official website of IRCTC. Thank you for showing interest in our article.
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