What do WL, RSWL, PQWL, GNWL on train tickets mean? Know all about railway codes

Every time we book a railway ticket, we come across many abbreviations we have no idea about. Central Railways information system maintains the details of the passenger through these abbreviations. Codes including CNF, RAC, WL, RSWL, PQWL, GNWL, leaves many passengers confused. It’s important for us to know the meaning of these railway codes, if we are planning to travel.

Here are some most common abbreviations used by the Indian Railways which passengers must know:

1. PNR: PNR means passenger name record, it's 10 Digit Unique Number generated if a passenger books a train ticket via Online or Offline. Even in the case of bulk booking, a single PNR number can hold of six passengers’ details. 

2. WL: The passenger with WL ticket is in the waiting list and is not allowed to board the train. A waitlist ticket can be cancelled by the passenger 30 minutes before the departure of the train. If a WL ticket does not get confirmed, it gets cancelled automatically.

3. RSWL: Roadside Station Waiting List (RSWL) is allotted when berths or seats are booked by the originating station for journeys up to the road-side station and distance restrictions may not apply. This waiting list has also very less chances of confirmation.

4. RQWL: If a ticket is to be booked from an intermediate station to another intermediate station, and if it is not covered by the general quota or by the remote location quotas or pooled quota, the request for the ticket may go into a Request Waiting List (RQWL).

5. RAC: If a user has been issued an RAC ticket, then most likely his ticket will get confirmed by the time of chart preparation and he will get a berth. In case the ticket remains RAC even after chart preparation, then user is allotted a half berth (seat) i.e., two persons having RAC ticket status are allotted one side-lower berth. The TTE is obligated to allot berths which are cancelled after chart preparation to these RAC passengers.

6. CNF: In this case the passenger gets a full berth for the journey, he may not get berth details even for confirmed ticket. This is because the berth allotment for this class is done manually by the TTE on chart preparation.

7. CAN: It means, the passenger seat has been cancelled.

8. GNWL: General Waiting List (GNWL) waitlisted tickets are issued after the passengers cancel their confirmed bookings. This is the most common type of waiting list and has got the highest chances of confirmation.

9. TQWL: TQWL stands for Tatkal Waitlist. When a passenger does a tatkal booking and is put on the waitlist, the status is shown as TQWL. This ticket is least likely to get confirmed.

10. PQWL: It stands for Pooled Quota Waitlist. Under this, passengers travelling between intermediate stations and have a separate waitlist from the general waitlist.