The first train to exclusively promote tourism was flagged off from Kamakhya station here by Assam tourism minister Chandan Brahma and other officials of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) on Wednesday.

The 12552/ 12551 Kamakhya- Yesvantpur- Kamakhya AC Express became the first such train of the railways to be branded with a state government’s publicity campaign. The passenger train will promote the brand Awesome Assam.

“We want to promote Assam’s tourism potentiality across the country through this initiative. This is happening for the first time. It will be easier for people in different parts of the country to learn the scope of tourism through this train. This will boost the tourism sector,” Brahma said.

Using the railways’ services to promote brands and products is an innovative idea offered to the state governments.

The Assam tourism department will use three NFR trains to promote the Awesome Assam brand. Images of various landscapes and potential tourist destinations will be painted on the trains’ body.

Passing through several cities and towns, the train will travel to Bangalore, covering a distance of 3,025km.

“While the 12552/ 12551 Kamakhya-Yesvantpur-Kamakhya AC Express will cover the route towards South India, we are planning to reach destinations like Mumbai and Katra in the west and north respectively, to promote the brand,” said chairperson of Assam Tourism Development Corporation Ltd, Jayanta Malla Baruah. He added that they are planning to use app-based cab services to promote the brand.

The procedures of the campaign were simplified by bringing the branding tariffs based on per train recently. Following the simplification, Assam became the first state to grab the opportunity to use this unique advertising medium, an NFR statement said.

NFR’s general manager Sanjive Roy and other senior officials of the state government and the railways were present on the occasion.