Railways announces two special trains for Vaishno Devi pilgrims

Kuldip Bhatia

Ludhiana, October 4

The Northern Railway has announced plans to operate two special trains to ensure hassle-free travel for commuters embarking on a pilgrimage to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.

The pair of trains — (No. 04049/50) will run between New Delhi and Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra and (No. 04079/80) between Varanasi and Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra — making 48 trips in all in two directions from October 16 to December 1. The special train that will be operated between New Delhi and Varanasi will make 22 trips from November 6 to December 1.

Starting October 16, the train (No. 04049) will depart from New Delhi every Monday and Saturday at 11.30 pm and reach Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra at 11.24 am the following day till November 30. In the return direction, the train (No. 04050) will leave Katra every Tuesday and Sunday at 6.30 pm and reach New Delhi at 6.25 am the following day.

With AC, sleeper and general coaches, the train would halt at Sonipat, Panipat, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Ambala Cantt, Ludhiana, Jalandhar Cantt, Pathankot Cantt, Jammu Tawi and Udhampur railway stations.

The (No. 01654) special train will leave Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra on every Sunday from October 22 to November 26 at 11.20 pm and reach Varanasi at 11.55 pm the day after that. The corresponding train (No. 01653) will leave Varanasi every Tuesday from October 24 to November 28 at 6.20 am and reach Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra at 11.20 am the following day.

With AC, sleeper and general accommodations, the trains (Nos. 01654 and 01653) would halt at Udhampur, Jammu Tawi, Pathankot Cantt, Jalandhar Cantt, Ludhiana, Ambala Cantt, Saharanpur, Moradabad, Bareilly, Lucknow and Sultanpur railway stations.

The (No. 04080) special reserved train will leave New Delhi every Monday, Thursday and Saturday from November 6 to 30 at 7.20 pm and reach Varanasi at 9.45 am the next morning. In the return direction, the train (No. 04079) will depart from Varanasi on every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday from November 7 to December 1 at 6.35 pm and reach New Delhi at 9 am the next morning.

With AC, sleeper and general coaches, the special train will stop at Ghaziabad, Moradabad, Lucknow and Partapgarh railway stations.

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