Railways to run nearly 6,000 special trains this festive season: Vaishnaw

Representational Pic/File

As the festive season approaches, Indian Railways has decided to run nearly 6,000 special trains to help more than one crore passengers get home for Durga Puja, Diwali and Chhath festivals in the country, reported the PTI.

Several train routes, especially those destined for Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal witness heavy rush during these festivals.

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A total of 5,975 special trains have been notified so far for this year's festival season, up from 4,429 last year, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told reporters, according to the PTI.

"This will facilitate more than one crore passengers to go home during this puja rush," he said.

Durga Puja begins on October 9, Diwali will be celebrated on October 31, while Chhath Puja will take place on November 7 and 8 this year.

Officials said the number of special trains can increase further if there is a higher demand.

Besides, additional general coaches have been added to 108 trains and 12,500 new coaches have been sanctioned to be built and those would be added to various trains over next the next one to two years.

Western Railway to run five festive special trains

Meanwhile, the Western Railway on Friday said that for the convenience of passengers and to clear the extra rush of passengers during the ensuing festive season, Western Railway has decided to run Special Train on Special Fare to various destinations. Also, WR has decided to further continue the extension of Train No.14708/14707 Dadar - Bikaner Ranakpur Express upto Lalgarh Station on temporary basis from 30th September to 31st December, 2024 on existing timings and stoppages, etc.

1. Train No. 09027/09028 Bandra Terminus - Malda Town Special (Weekly) [18 Trips]

Train No. 09027 Bandra Terminus - Malda Town Special will leave Bandra Terminus every Wednesday at 11:00 hrs & will reach Malda Town at 16:30 hrs, on Friday. This train will run from 2nd October, 2024 to 27th November 2024. Similarly, Train No. 09028 Malda Town - Bandra Terminus Special will depart from Malda Town every Saturday at 17:30 hrs & will arrive Bandra Terminus at 18:15 hrs, on Monday. This train will run from 5th October, 2024 to 30th November, 2024.

Enroute this train will halt at Borivali, Vapi, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Godhra, Ratlam, Kota, Sawai Madhopur, Gangapur City, Bayana, Agra Fort, Tundla, Etawah, Kanpur Central, Aishbagh, Barabanki, Gonda, Basti, Gorakhpur, Narkatiyaganj, Bapudham Mothihari, Muzaffarpur, Samastipur, Barauni, Kiul, Abhaipur, Jamalpur, Sultanganj, Bhagalpur, Kahalgaon, Sahibganj, Barharwa and New Farakka stations in both directions.

This train comprises of AC 3-Tier, Sleeper Class and General Second-Class coaches.

2. Train No. 09031/09032 Bandra Terminus - Gorakhpur - Dahanu Road Special (Weekly) [18 Trips]

Train No. 09031 Bandra Terminus - Gorakhpur Special will leave Bandra Terminus every Thursday at 12:15 hrs & will reach Gorakhpur at 21:00 hrs, the next day. This train will run from 03rd October, 2024 to 28th November, 2024. Similarly, Train No. 09032 Gorakhpur - Dahanu Road Special will depart from Gorakhpur every Saturday at 04:00 hrs & will arrive Dahanu Road at 12:25 hrs, the next day. This train will run from 5th October, 2024 to 30th November, 2024.

Enroute this train will halt at Vapi, Valsad, Udhna, Bharuch, Vadodara, Ratlam, Ujjain, Sant Hirdaram Nagar, Bina, Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi, Kanpur Central, Lucknow, Barabanki, Gonda, Mankapur, Basti and Khalilabad stations in both directions. Train No. 09031 will have additional halts at Borivali, Palghar, Dahanu Road and Godhra stations.

This train comprises of AC 3-Tier, Sleeper Class and General Second-Class coaches.

3. Train No. 09013/09014 Udhna - Chhapra (Weekly) Special [18 Trips]

Train No. 09013 Udhna - Chhapra Special will depart from Udhna every Saturday at 07:00 hrs. & will reach Chhapra at 19:30 hrs., the next day. This train will run from 05th October, 2024 to 30th November, 2024. Similarly, Train No. 09014 Chhapra - Udhna Special will depart from Chhapra every Sunday at 22:30 hrs. & will arrive Udhna at 08:15 hrs., on Tuesday day. This train will run from 06th October, 2024 to 1st December, 2024.

Enroute this train will halt at Bharuch, Vadodara, Godhra, Ratlam, Ujjain, Sant Hirdaram Nagar, Bina, Saugor, Damoh, Katni Murwara, Satna, Manikpur, Prayagraj Chheoki, Mirzapur, Varanasi, Aunrihar, Ghazipur City and Ballia Stations in both directions.

This train comprises of AC 2-Tier, AC 3-Tier, Sleeper Class and General Second-Class coaches.

4. Train No. 09457/09458 Ahmedabad - Danapur Special (Weekly) [16 Trips]

Train No. 09457 Ahmedabad - Danapur Special will depart from Ahmedabad every Sunday at 08:25 hrs & will reach Danapur at 15:00 hrs, the next day. This train will run from 06th October, 2024 to 24th November, 2024. Similarly, Train No. 09458 Danapur - Ahmedabad Special will depart from Danapur every Monday at 18:10 hrs & will reach Ahmedabad at 03:00 hrs, on Wednesday. This train will run from 07 October, 2024 to 25th November, 2024.

Enroute this train will halt at Anand, Chhayapuri, Godhra, Ratlam, Nagda, Ujjain, Maksi, Shajapur, Biyavra Rajgarh, Ruthiyai, Guna, Shivpuri, Gwalior, Soni, Etawah, Govindpuri, Fatehpur, Prayagraj Chheoki, Mirzapur, Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, Buxar and Ara stations in both directions.

This train comprises of AC 3-Tier, Sleeper Class and General Second Class Coaches.

5. Train No. 09421/09422 Sabarmati - Sitamarhi Special (Weekly) [18 Trips]

Train No. 09421 Sabarmati - Sitamarhi Special will depart from Sabarmati every Saturday at 19:45 hrs & will reach Sitamadhi at 08:30 hrs, on Monday. This train will run from 05th October, 2024 to 30th November, 2024. Similarly, Train No. 09422 Sitamarhi - Sabarmati Special will depart from Sitamarhi every Monday at 16:00 hrs & will reach Sabarmati at 06:00 hrs, on Wednesday. This train will run from 07th October, 2024 to 2nd December, 2024.

Enroute this train will halt at Mahesana, Palanpur, Abu Road, Falna, Marwar, Beawar, Ajmer, Kishangarh, Jaipur, Bandikui, Bharatpur, Achhnera, Agra Fort, Tundla, Etawah, Kanpur Central, Unnao , Lucknow, Barabanki, Gonda, Basti, Khalilabad, Gorakhpur, Siswa Bazar, Narkatiaganj and Raxaul stations in both directions.

This train comprises of AC 3-Tier, Sleeper Class and General Second Coaches.

(with PTI inputs)