Mumbai: A good response from passengers to the first Rajdhani on Mumbai-Delhi route through the Central Zone has prompted the authorities to think of increasing the frequency of the now bi-weekly train. The occupancy in the train, which started in January, is nearly 100 per cent, CR’s principal chief commercial manager Shailendra Kumar told PTI.
“From day one, it’s been receiving an overwhelming response. So, we are thinking of requesting the Railway Board to possibly run it daily,” he said. He said the train is perfect to go to Agra from Mumbai and to come to Nashik from Delhi. “A big number of passengers are booking tickets for these two destinations,” he added.
Currently, the other two Rajdhani trains — one from Mumbai Central and the other from Bandra Terminus — run on the Western Railway route. The new train is the first Rajdhani in Maharashtra which takes a detour via Madhya Pradesh, instead of Gujarat. Kumar said earnings from its ticket sales were beyond expectations. They want more and more passengers to travel in this premium train.
The train leaves CSMT in Mumbai every Wednesday and Saturday at 2.50pm and reaches Hazrat Nizamuddin in Delhi at 10.20am the next day. On its return journey, the train leaves HazratNizamuddin every Thursday and Sunday at 4.15pm and arrives at CSMT at 11.55am next day.
Besides CSMT and Hazrat Nizamuddin, it halts at Kalyan, Nashik, Jalgaon, Khandwa, Bhopal, Jhansi and Agra, passing through two significant Hindi heartland states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. “Halting the train at Kalyan station (in Thane) has proved beneficial for travellers,” Kumar added.
