South Eastern Railway will run three superfast specials on the Ranchi-Patna, Ranchi-Jaynagar (in Bihar) and Tatanagar-Patna routes in an attempt to clear the rush of passengers for the Chhath festival on November 21 and 22.
According to the office of the chief passenger traffic manager (CPTM) of SER based in Calcutta, the 02849 Ranchi-Patna Special will leave Ranchi at 11.45pm on November 18. The train will reach Patna at 8am, the next day. While returning, the 02850 Patna-Ranchi Special will leave Patna at 9am on November 19. It will arrive in Ranchi at 5.25pm on the same day.
The special train will have one AC 2-tier, four AC 3-tier and 15 sleeper class coaches. The train will stop at N S C Bose Gomoh, Koderma, Gaya and Jahanabad between Ranchi and Patna.
The second train, 02870/02869 Ranchi-Jaynagar Superfast Festival Special, will leave Ranchi at 4.10 pm on November 18. It will reach Jaynagar at 5 pm the next day. While returning, the 02869 Jaynagar-Ranchi Special will leave Jaynagar at 9am on November 19. It will arrive at Ranchi railway station at 11.40 pm the same day.
The special train will have one AC 2-tier, three AC 3-tier, and 10 sleeper class coaches. The train will stop at Dhanbad, Chittaranjan, Madhupur, Jasidih, Jhajha, Kiul, Barauni, Samastipur and Darbhanga between Ranchi and Jaynagar.
The third train, 02860/02859 Tatanagar-Patna Superfast Festival Special, will leave Tatanagar at 4am on November 18. It will reach Patna at 2.05pm on the same day. While returning, the 02859 Patna-Tatanagar Special will leave Patna at 11.55pm on November 18 and arrive at Tatanagar at 9.20 am, the next day.
The special train will have one AC chair car and 11 second class chair car coaches. This train will stop at Asansol, Chittaranjan, Madhupur, Jasidih, Jhajha, Kiul, Mokama and Bakhtiyarpur between Tatanagar and Patna railway junction.
SER chief public relations officer Sanjay Ghosh said "Passengers are requested to strictly observe Covid-19 protocols while undertaking the journey."
The Chhotanagpur Passenger Association and several other passenger welfare outfits welcomed the railway's decision to announce special trains to ease the Chhath rush.
