If you have booked the ticket online through IRCTC and it doesn't get confirmed until charting, IRCTC will refund your amount. Hence traveling on PQWL, no matter what class you're in, will be treated as ticketless travel and penalized accordingly.

If your PQWL (Pooled Quota Waiting List) ticket on Indian Railways is not confirmed by the time the final chart is prepared, it is automatically cancelled and a refund is issued. For e-tickets, the system handles this entirely: if the status remains "Waitlisted" after the chart is made (usually 4 hours before departure), the ticket is voided, the passenger is not allowed to board the train, and the money is credited back to the original payment source minus a small clerkage fee. For counter tickets (i.e., those bought at a station), you must physically visit a reservation counter to cancel the ticket and claim your refund; unlike e-tickets, they are not auto-refunded. Because the Pooled Quota is shared across several intermediate stations and is generally a smaller pool than the General Quota (GNWL), the chances of a PQWL ticket moving to "Confirmed" status are statistically much lower. If your travel is essential, it is often better to look for a Tatkal ticket or an alternative train as soon as you see your PQWL status stagnating.