In a major development, IRCTC is set to soon unveil the nation’s third privatised train, which would operate between the cities of Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Indore in Madhya Pradesh (MP).
India will get its third private train very soon. Indian Railways is all set to start to Indore-Varanasi Tejas Express, said Railway Board Chairman V.K. Yadav. Completely run by Indian Rail Catering and Tourism (IRCTC), the all-new Indore-Varanasi Tejas Express will run three days a week.
It should be noted that the third privatised train, which comes after the successful launch of IRCTC run privatised Tejas Express trains on Delhi-Lucknow and Mumbai-Ahmedabad routes will be boasting of the rakes same as those in Humsafar Express trains.
In Budget 2020, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said more Tejas like trains will be coming in the future. “More Tejas-type trains to connect iconic tourist destinations. High-speed train between Mumbai-Ahmedabad would be actively pursued,” Sitharaman said.
Indore-Varanasi Tejas Express will be the first Tejas Express which will run overnight. Railway Board Chairman Yadav said that the new Indore-Varanasi Tejas Express will commence this month.
Last year, IRCTC launched its first Tejas Express which runs on Lucknow-Delhi route. IRCTC Lucknow-Delhi Tejas Express runs six days a week and covers the distance between Lucknow and Delhi in five and half hours. The second Tejas Express by the railway subsidiary started last month on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route. Touted as the fastest train on this route, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Tejas Express completes the journey in just six hours.
IRCTC follows dynamic fare scheme for both the trains. Other than the increased speed and swanky amenities, IRCTC also introduced two unique schemes with Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express.
In a first, IRCTC decided to pay the travellers of Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express if the train is delayed. If the Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express delays for over an hour, passengers will get a compensation of ₹100. For a delay of two hours and more, the passengers will receive ₹250, IRCTC said. Passengers will also get the benefit of this scheme in Mumbai-Ahmedabad Tejas Express. For the first time, IRCTC is also offering free insurance of ₹25 lakh to all the passengers travelling by Tejas Express.
Indian Railways also decided to allow private entities to operate passenger trains on its routes. Niti Aayog had recently moved a draft document for discussion on private participation in Railways. Indian Railways proposed a plan to include private players in 100 routes across the country.
