Guwahati, Jan 6 (IANS): In a bid to promote tourism, Indian Railways is operating a Bharat Gaurav special train between Rana Pratap Nagar in Rajasthan and Kamakhya in Guwahati, officials said here on Sunday.
The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Kapinjal Kishore Sharma said that the tour programme of this special tourist train would be for seven days which has commenced its journey from January 3 and would conclude on January 9.
He said that the train departed from Rana Pratap Nagar on January 3 to reach Kamakhya in Guwahati on January 5 and would halt for 2 days for visits to various places of tourist interest. Again, the train would depart from Kamakhya on January 7 to reach Rana Pratap Nagar on January 9.
The special tourist train will run via Berach junction Cabin, Ajmer junction, Madar, Jaipur junction Agra Cantonment, Etawah junction, Govindpuri, Prayagraj junction, Varanasi junction, Pt. DD Upadhyaya junction, Patliputra, Barauni junction, Katihar, New Jalpaiguri, New Coochbehar and New Bongaigaon railway station during its both-way journey.
The train will consist of Sleeper class and AC-3 tier coaches for the accommodation of tourists. This Bharat Gaurav Special train aims to offer a unique travel experience, celebrating the cultural diversity and heritage of India, the CPRO said.
He said that people from North Bengal areas and its adjacent states would highly benefit from this tour programme that covers most of the destinations in a single go, however, it would cost much higher if planned individually. Bharat Gaurav is the first such type of tourism special train for travel enthusiasts and it is in line with the Government of India’s initiatives ‘Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat’ and ‘Dekho Apna Desh’, Sharma said.
The Kamakhya temple, reconstructed in 1565, and located at a distance of 7 km from Guwahati, is one of the biggest Shakti shrines in the country. Situated on the Nilachal hills, this temple is an important pilgrimage centre for tantric worshippers and Hindus. It is also considered important as it is the temple where the beliefs and practices of the Aryan communities coincide with non-Aryan communities.