The second service of the theme-based Bharat Gaurav Train in Southern Railway from Madurai to Varanasi was flagged off on 23rd July, 2022.
More details:
- Shri Prahlad Joshi, Hon’ble Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Coal and Mines flagged off the service through video-conferencing from New Delhi. Shri Danve Raosaheb Dadarao, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Railways, Coal and Mines attended through virtual means.
- Smt. Darshana Vikram Jardosh, Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Textiles and Railways, and Shri V.K.Tripathy, Chairman & CEO, Railway Board also graced the function which was organized as part of valedictory event of Iconic Week of Azadi Ki Rail Gadi Aur Stations.
- The 12-day Bharat Gaurav round trip Service from Madurai to Varanasi will run via Dindigul, Tiruchchirappalli, Villupuram, Chennai Egmore, Vijayawada, Samalkote, Puri, Jaipur, Howrah, Gaya to reach Varanasi and return to Madurai via Prayagraj Rambagh, Ballarshah, Warrangal and Vijayawada.
- The train will run with a composition of Four 3AC coaches, Six Sleeper class coaches, 2 pantry cars and 2 SLRs.
Revenue for Railways:
- M/s Travel Times (India) Private Limited, Chennai, who had registered on 11.04.2022 and placed its rake request demand online and paid a Bank guarantee for Rs. 1 crore as Rake Registration Fee on 2.6.2022 for the rake with age profile of 15 to 20 years.
- From operation of this Bharat Gaurav train, Southern Railway would get a total fixed revenue of Rs. 2.52 crores per annum, i.e., an annual Right to use charges of Rs. 32.76 lakhs (exl GST) and Rs. 55.08 lakh(exl GST) towards quarterly fixed haulage charges.
- In addition, variable haulage charge of Rs. 55.80 lakhs (excl GST). Similar variable charges will be collected for every trip depending upon the itinerary.
Bharat Gaurav Trains:
- With the objective of showcasing India’s rich cultural heritage and magnificent historical places to the people of India and the world, Indian Railways introduced the “Bharat Gaurav Trains” scheme with effect from 23.11.2021.
- The first service of the theme-based Bharat Gaurav Train from Coimbatore North to Sainagar Shirdi was operated on 14.06.2022.
- Bharat Gaurav scheme also aims to leverage the core strengths of the professionals of the tourism sector to run theme-based trains to tap the vast tourist potential of India.
Source: Southern Railway -Press Release | Image Credit (representational): MoR
