The much awaited Chandigarh-Jaipur rail link will become operational from Monday. Nearly seven months after announcement in interim union railway budget in February, the Chandigarh-Jaipur intercity (daily) will finally chug off from the city on Monday.
The train will leave the local station at 12.45 pm and reach Jaipur the next day at 12.50 am.
So far, Chandigarh Garib Rath (12984) was taking passengers to Jaipur thrice a week.
The train will further boast the connectivity of Chandigarh with Jaipur. The train number 19718 will also stop at various destinations of Haryana, including Ambala Cantt, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Narwana, Jind, Rohtak, Jhajjar, Rewari, besides Khairthal, Alwar, Raigarh, Bandikuai and Dausa in Rajasthan before reaching the Jaipur station.
On its return journey from Jaipur, train number 19717 will depart Jaipur station daily at 4.40 pm and will reach Chandigarh the following day at 4.55 pm. It will stop at same stations during the outward journey. RK Dutta, station superintendent of local station, said the train would comprise 12 coaches, including one two-tier AC coach, one three-tier AC coach and four sleeper coaches.
Both local hospitality and general public welcomed the new train as they said it would boast tourism as well as cultural exchange between the two cities.
Vijay Nalwa, a local resident, said the new train would make journey to Jaipur very comfortable.
Many new trains still on papers
Vijay Nalwa, a local resident, said the new train would make journey to Jaipur very comfortable.
Many new trains still on papers
Among the trains which are still on papers include Chandigarh-Ferozepur Express (daily), Ram Nagar-Chandigarh Express (weekly) via Moradabad, Saharanpur and Kalka-Katra Express (daily). In the new time table which was released recently, Chandigarh-Ferozepur Express (daily) is slotted between 4pm and 4.30pm, while Kalka-Katra train has been given the slot of 7.30am.
The much-awaited train is Kalka-Katra Express, which will directly connect the city till Mata Vaishno Devi shrine.
Several city residents said there were several groups that arranged buses till Katra but faced a lot of hassle in road journey. Therefore, keeping in view their religious sentiments and safety, the authorities should start Kalka-Katra train at the earliest.