MUMBAI: Ticketing service was not available on the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation's (IRCTC) website and mobile application for some hours on Tuesday due to "technical reasons", officials said.
The booking issue was later resolved, they said.
To make the situation worse for passengers, the unreserved ticketing system (UTS) used for purchasing tickets through the Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs) also developed an undisclosed problem.
Several people faced problems in booking tickets since morning.
Some people also complained they faced issues while booking tickets through the IRCTC's ticketing partners.
"Due to technical reasons, the ticketing service is not available on IRCTC site and app. Technical team of CRIS (Centre for Railway Information Systems) is resolving the issue," the IRCTC tweeted.
It also advised passengers to book their tickets on platforms like Amazon, MakeMyTrip, among others.
A Central Railway (CR) spokesperson said the IRCTC website had a technical issue from 2.56 am to 1.28 pm. The website is working normally from 1.28 pm, the official said.
Some people claimed when they tried to book tickets through the IRCTC website or mobile application, the money got deducted from their accounts, but their tickets were not booked.
"I had to book tickets today.When I tried first time, payment failed but ticket was not booked. I tried 5 times but still not booked. My Rs 0000 is under processing now. First I book sleeper class that's not booked then I try (3AC)that still not booked," one Sharib Khan tweeted.
Another person, Dhinesh Rajan, in a tweet said, "Tried to book a ticket using @makemytrip and the page got struck after the payment and closed. I couldn't book ticket for my journey and lost my money by trusting a third party website as instructed by @IRCTCofficial."
In Mumbai, the IRCTC's western region group general manager and spokesperson did not respond to media queries about the issues.
A Central Railway spokesperson said in view of the technical issue of the IRCTC website and mobile application ticket booking, the CR opened 12 extra PRS (passenger reservation system) window counters at stations in the Mumbai Division, including five at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus here and some other stations in Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai.
Several suburban commuters also claimed the UTS used for purchasing tickets from ATVMs also developed a snag due to which they were unable to book tickets.
A senior CR official said efforts were on to resolve the issue in the UTS system.