Indian Railways: IRCTC to begin Shri Jagannath Yatra train from January 25 under Bharat Gaurav

The Shri Jagannath Yatra tourist train will set out on its inaugural journey on January 25 as part of the ambitious Bharat Gaurav initiative of the Indian Railways, visiting popular religious and historic sites in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha. The itinerary includes stops at Gaya, Varanasi, and the Baidyanath Dham shrine in Deoghar, Jharkhand, in addition to the Jagannath Temple in Puri. A 33 percent concession is being offered for the tour by the Railways. Fitted with a modern state-of-the-art AC rake, the tourist train will start from Delhi's Safdarjung railway station on January 25 and return on February 1.

Tourists will have options to board or de-board the train at Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Tundla, Etawah, Kanpur, and Lucknow stations. "IRCTC Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train launch is in line with the Government of India initiative 'Dekho Apna Desh' to promote domestic tourism. Indian Railways is providing approximately 33 per cent concession for the promotion of rail tourism under the Bharat Gaurav Train scheme. Packages offered are at an economical rate starting from Rs 17,655/- per person," a statement from IRCTC said.

Let’s embark on a holy expedition with Shri Jagannath Yatra by Bharat Gaurav Train from 25th jan to 1st feb,2023; the itinerary will include prominent sacred temples while travelling through pilgrimage cities of Varanasi, Puri and Gaya. For details, visit https://t.co/EFY427srNt pic.twitter.com/T6zff4E3dN — Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) December 22, 2022

The seven-night-eight-day tour will have its first stop at Varanasi, where tourists will visit the Kashi Vishwanath temple, the corridor connecting it with the ghats of the Ganga and witness the 'aarti' performed on the banks of the river.

The train will then reach Jasidih railway station in Jharkhand from where the tourist will proceed to visit the Baidyanath Dham temple. It will then travel to Puri where a two-night stay will be arranged in hotels. In Odisha, tourists will visit the Jagannath Temple and the Golden beach of Puri, the Sun Temple at Konark and temples in Bhubaneswar.

Gaya will be the last destination where a visit to the Vishnupad Temple will be covered. The train will return to Delhi on the eighth day of its journey on February 1. The fully air-conditioned tourist train will comprise 11 AC three-tier coaches, a pantry car and two sleeper coaches.

Freshly cooked vegetarian meals will be served on board. The train has also been fitted with an infotainment system for the entertainment of the passengers as well as for public announcements. Enhanced security features of CCTV cameras and guards will be deployed in each coach, the IRCTC said.

It will be an all-inclusive tour package covering train journey in AC three-tier, night stay at AC hotels, veg-only meals, transfer and sight-seeing in buses, travel Insurance and services of a guide. "All necessary health precautionary measures will be taken care of and IRCTC will make efforts to provide a safe and memorable experience to the guests," it said.

With PTI Inputs