what is rc in railway ticket

In railway ticketing, RC stands for Reservation Against Cancellation. It is a type of ticket that can be sold for travel on the Indian Railways. An RAC ticket ensures certainty of travel, but it does not guarantee a berth. A berth will be allocated to the ticket holder who reserves an RAC ticket if passengers who already have a confirmed ticket do not board before the train departure or get their confirmed ticket cancelled. A berth is split into 2 seats for 2 RAC ticket holders. If there are any last minute cancellations, any quota remains unsold, or any confirmed ticket holders are given a free upgrade according to seat availability in upper class, an RAC ticket holder is given an empty berth. Generally, RAC/WL tickets will have two numbers - RAC8/RAC2, WL20/WL15, WL12/RAC2, etc. The first number shows the status of the ticket at the time of booking. The second number after the slash (/) shows the current status of the ticket. So, RAC8/RAC2 means that when the ticket is purchased, it was the 8th such ticket, and currently, it is the 2nd such ticket.