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The service has been extended for the “convenience of the rail passengers and to clear extra rush during festive season”
The train from Bihar’s capital city is already packed on November 9, 11, 14 and 16. (File)
The special Vande Bharat train connecting national capital Delhi with Bihar’s Patna has been extended till November 30.
The official notification, signed by Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, Northern Railway’s chief public relations officer, reads that the service has been extended for the “convenience of the rail passengers and to clear extra rush during festive season”.
Speaking to News18, a railway official shared that the special train has been extended as it was witnessing full occupancy. “The special train has registered great response and the occupancy is also full in almost all the days,” they said, demanding anonymity.
The train from Bihar’s capital city is already packed on November 9, 11, 14 and 16, they shared. So far, the rush was from the Delhi side and now that celebration will be over the rush is from Patna side.
It is important to note that the Delhi-Patna Vande Bharat is not a regular service and has been started to clear the extra rush for Chhath celebrations. The train will operate only for a certain pre-decided time and will stop operations after that.
Initially, when the special train was first announced last month, it was decided that there would be eight trips of the Vande Bharat between Patna and Delhi, four from each side.
The eight-coach train was to run from October 10, November 1, 3 and 6 from Delhi and the next day return journey from Patna.
On November 1, the Railways extended the special train till November 21 with six additional trips from each side. The train will run from Delhi also on November 8, 10, 13, 15, 17 and 20 and the next day from Patna.
It started from Delhi at 8.25 am and concluded the journey at 8 pm in Patna. On its way back, it starts at 7. 0 am and reaches Delhi at 7 pm. The special train also connects Kanpur, Prayagraj, Chandauli, Mughalsarai, Buxar and Ara.
LUCKNOW-CHHAPRA VANDE BHARAT ALSO EXTENDED TILL NOVEMBER-END
Another eight-coach Vande Bharat was started between Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh and Chhapra in Bihar from October 25. This Vande Bharat is operational daily, six days a week, except Tuesday. It starts from Lucknow at 2.15 pm and reaches Chhapra at 9.30 pm while passing through Sultanpur, Varanasi, Ghazipur, Ballia, and Suraimanpur.
It is also the only Vande Bharat train that operates after midnight. On its way back from Chhapra, it starts at 11 pm and reaches Lucknow at 6.30 am.
Initially, the train was to run between October 25 and November 8, but has now been extended till November 30.