The much-awaited Jyotirling Tourist Train – Swadesh Darshan left Kolkata station on Sunday November 6 morning. The train will travel to Ujjain, Omkareshwar, Shirdi, Dwarka, Somnath temple and the Statue of Unity before returning to Kolkata on November 17.
A total of 750 passengers will make the journey to different pilgrim sites for the next 12 days. After Kolkata station, passengers will board the special train from Dumka, Bhagalpur and Jamalpur.
The ticket price, which includes food, hotel accommodation and train fare, has two segments — Rs 22,010 per head for sleeper class passengers and Rs 33,020 per person for AC III-tier passengers.
Deluxe hotel accommodation has been arranged for sleeper class guests while three-star hotels have been booked for passengers who travel by AC III tier. Only vegetarian food will be served on the train. However, tourists can buy food of their choice.
“Once a passenger boards the train, the entire journey will be taken care of by IRCTC. The fare covers hotel and sightseeing expenses and logistics for the next 12 days,” said Zafar Azam, group general manager of IRCTC, Kolkata.
IRCTC is planning another similar trip in December. “The special train to Patna Sahib will tentatively leave on December 26. Two trips to south India are being planned for January. The tickets will soon be available on the IRCTC website,” Azam said.