The Railways will run 491 trips of 196 special trains during Holi for the convenience of passengers and to ease the festive rush, the national transporter said. These special trains will connect major destinations across the country, they said.

"In this ongoing festive season of Holi, for the convenience of rail travellers and to clear extra rush of passengers, Indian Railways is running 491 trips of 196 special trains.

"Special trains have been planned to connect major destinations across the country like Delhi- Patna, Delhi- Bhagalpur, Delhi-Muzaffarpur, Delhi-Saharsa, Gorakhpur- Mumbai, Kolkata-Puri, Guwahati- Ranchi , New Delhi- Sri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, Jaipur- Bandra Terminus, Pune- Danapur etc.," the Railways ministry said in a statement on Monday.

The Railways has also put into effect crowd controlling measures by forming queue at the terminus stations under the supervision of RPF staff for orderly entry of passengers in unreserved coaches is being ensured, it said.

Additional RPF personnel have been deployed at major stations to ensure security of passengers, it said.

Officers have been deployed on emergency duty at major stations to ensure smooth running of trains. Staff are deployed in various sections to attend any disruption of train service on priority, the Railways said.

Measures have been taken for frequent and timely announcement of arrival/departure of trains with platform numbers.

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