look news india
On the auspicious occasion of Dussehra and Diwali, lakhs of people are planning to return to their families and native villages and cities, due to which the waiting list in regular trains has crossed hundreds months ago. To solve this critical problem of passengers and control overcrowding, Indian Railways has geared up in this festive season. The railway administration has officially announced that to ease the festival rush, special trains will be run on various busy railway routes with a total of 102 trips. These additional services are aimed at providing comfortable and seamless travel options to migrants on long distance as well as important intercity connecting routes.
According to officials, the running of these special trains will not only reduce the pressure on regular express trains, but will also significantly increase the chances of passengers preparing to go home at the last moment getting confirmed seats. Railways has clarified that the reservation facility in all these special trains will be made live on all platforms from Sunday, September 27. Passengers will be able to book their tickets through computerized PRS counters present at railway stations as well as online.
To connect the country’s financial capital Mumbai with South India’s major metropolis Chennai, it has been decided to run a weekly special train between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) and Chennai Central. This train will make a total of 12 trips in both directions, which will directly benefit the passengers of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. This special train from Mumbai to Chennai will depart every Wednesday at 12:35 pm between October 14 and November 18 and will reach its destination Chennai at 11:30 pm on the same day.
In the return direction, Chennai-Mumbai special train will depart Chennai at 4:00 am every Thursday between October 15 and November 19 and reach CSMT Mumbai at 4:00 am the next day. En route, this train will stop at important stations like Dadar, Thane, Kalyan, Lonavala, Pune, Daund, Solapur, Kalaburagi, Wadi, Raichur, Mantralayam Road, Guntakal, Renigunta, Arakkonam and Perambur in both directions. This train is going to prove to be very convenient for the pilgrims also due to the stoppage at Mantralayam Road station.
Keeping in mind the age-old demand of passengers of Marathwada region and the huge number of people returning home from Mumbai-Pune during festivals, Central Railway has notified a bi-weekly special train service between CSMT Mumbai and Latur. This train will make 13 trips each (total 26 trips) in both directions. The Mumbai-Latur service will be operated every Tuesday and Thursday from October 13 to November 24, while the return service from Latur to Mumbai will also operate on the same scheduled days.
This special train will prove to be a boon for thousands of working people and students who frequently commute between Western Maharashtra and Marathwada. During the journey this train will stop at Dadar, Thane, Kalyan, Lonavala, Pune, Daund, Kurduvadi, Barshi Town, Dharashiv (Osmanabad) and Harangul stations. These stops will provide direct rail connectivity not only to Latur but also to the residents of the town areas of Solapur and Dharashiv districts.
The widest part of this big package of festival special trains has been allocated between the historic city of Kolhapur in western Maharashtra and Kalaburgi (Gulbarga) in northern Karnataka. Railways will operate a total of 64 trips on this important route. This special train will run regularly on all six days of the week except Friday between October 10 and November 15, completing 32 trips each in both directions.
According to the timetable, this train will leave from Kolhapur at 6:10 am and will reach Kalaburagi at 4:10 pm. In return, it will depart from Kalaburagi at 6:10 pm and reach Kolhapur at 5:40 am the next day. This train will stop at dozens of stations on the way like Hatkangale, Jaysingpur, Miraj Junction, Arg, Belanki, Sulgare, Kavathe Mahankal, Langarpeth, Dhalgaon, Mhasoba Dongargaon, Javale, Vasud, Sangola, Pandharpur, Modnimb, Kurduvadi Junction and Solapur Junction. Due to the stoppage at Pandharpur, Vitthal devotees and pilgrims will also get immense convenience in this festive season.
The booking process for all these festival special trains will formally start from September 27. Since these trains are being run under special festival operations, special fare structure will be applicable on them as per Railway rules. Passengers can book confirmed tickets through the official website of IRCTC, IRCTC Rail Connect app, RailOne mobile application or from the reservation counter of any nearest railway station.
Senior commercial officials of Solapur Railway Division have appealed to the passengers to avoid unauthorized touts during festivals and travel only with valid tickets. Before starting your journey, please double-confirm the live running status, platform number and timing of the train through the National Train Inquiry System (NTES) website or 139 Rail Helpline to avoid any inconvenience.