Shri Jagannath Yatra: Railway Minister Flags off IRCTC's Special Tourist Train From Delhi

The Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train is being operated by the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a public sector enterprise under the Ministry of Railways, on a special trip known as the Shri Jagannath Yatra. The government's "Dekho Apna Desh" strategy to encourage domestic tourism is in line with the special train. The IRCTC tourist train will be an all-inclusive trip package with prices starting with Rs 17,655 per person, covering train travel in Third AC, hotel nights, all meals (vegetarian only), all transportation and sightseeing in buses, travel insurance, and guide services.

The train was flagged off from Delhi`s Safdarjung Railway Station by Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Ashwini Vaishnaw and G Kishan Reddy. Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train started its eight-day journey with 528 tourists, and it will cover some of the prominent pilgrimage and heritage destinations in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha.

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The Bharat Gaurav Tourist train tour has its first stop at Varanasi, the ancient holy city, where tourists will visit the Kashi Vishwanath temple and corridor along with the Ganga ghat and participate in Arati. After Varanasi, the train will move to Jashidih Railway station in Jharkhand, and tourists will proceed to visit Baidyanath Dham Jyotirling temple.

Further, the train will depart from Jashidih to Puri, where a stay for two nights will be arranged for tourists in the hotels. While at Puri, tourists will visit Jagannath temple, Golden Puri beach, Sun temple at Konark, and various temples in Bhubaneshwar. After Puri, Gaya will be the last destination, where tourists will visit Vishnupad temple.

The train will finally return back to Delhi on February 1, 2023. Coupled with a modern state-of-the-art AC rake, the tourist train has options to board/de-board the train at Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Tundla, Etawah, Kanpur, and Lucknow stations in the tour. This fully air-conditioned tourist train comprises eleven 3rd AC coaches, one pantry car, and two Sitting cum Luggage Rake. Freshly cooked vegetarian meals will be served on board to the guests in their respective seats from the well-equipped modern pantry car. 

(With ANI Inputs)