Guwahati, Feb 15 (IANS) Indian Railways once again demonstrates its commitment towards passenger convenience by launching operations of special trains this festive rush, officials said here on Sunday.

According to the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, the Indian Railways is set to operate 1,500 special trains this year, ensuring smoother, more comfortable travel across major routes.

This proactive planning highlights Indian Railways’ dedication to meeting festive demand and providing reliable travel options for millions of passengers, he said.

CPRO Sharma added that in line with this initiative and to accommodate the increased passenger demand during the festive season of Holi, NFR has planned four pairs of special trains for now, with more trains to be announced in the coming days.

These special trains will run between Narangi-Gorakhpur-Narangi, Katihar-Amritsar-Katihar, Dibrugarh-Jhanjharpur-Dibrugarh and Dibrugarh-Kolkata-Dibrugarh.

These special trains, operating multiple trips across different periods, will run between February 18 and March 31.

The train services aimed to connect key destinations and ease congestion on regular trains, ensuring that passengers can celebrate the festival of colours with their families in a safe, convenient and timely manner.

The details of stoppages and timings of these special trains are available at IRCTC website and are also being notified in various newspapers and social media platforms of Northeast Frontier Railway.

Passengers are requested to verify the details before undertaking their journey.

The Northeast Frontier Railway operates special trains during every festive season to facilitate convenient travel for people across the eight Northeastern states.

The NFR, headquartered at Maligaon near Guwahati, operates across the Northeastern states as well as in seven districts of West Bengal and five districts of north Bihar.

Meanwhile, the Union Cabinet has recently approved a 15.8-km twin-tube tunnel between Gohpur and Numaligarh in Assam.

“The project will reduce travel distance from 240 km to 34 km and travel time from 6 hours to just 20 minutes, significantly strengthening regional connectivity and socio-economic growth,” the NFR officials said.

–IANS

sc/khz