Indian Railways is planning to run a Gurudwara Circuit Train for Sikh devotees to visit their pilgrimage sites, sources from the Indian Railways told ANI.
The 11-day journey that begins and ends in Amritsar will cover at least four prominent Gurudawaras including Harminder Sahib in Amritsar, Patna Sahib in Bihar’s capital city Patna, Hazoor Nanded Saheb in Nanded, Maharashtra & Damdama Sahib in Bhatinda. This train will have several stoppages including Ambala, Saharanpur, Lucknow, Manmad, Surat, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Bathinda, and Amritsar.
The special train will comprise 16 coaches including sleeper class and air-conditioned class. The cost of travel for a passenger in an AC class will range between Rs 900-1000 per passenger per day, a News18 report stated.
This circuit train will be run on a leasing model. The lease period will have to be a minimum of five years and can extend to the maximum coder life. As per the officials associated with the project, it is being said at the lease cost per year will be 7% of the depreciated value of the coach, the news report mentioned.
Presently, details about the Gurudwara Circuit Special train are being finalised and will be soon made available to the public.
The train will have both sleeper and AC coaches and fares will be decided by the operator. Along with this, a pantry car will also be installed in the train but passengers will have to book food in advance, sources said.
Sources associated with the Ministry of Railways said that for the last few years, the Railways has been working on many such projects, aimed at making the common people aware of the cultural and religious heritage of the country. After ‘Ramayana Circuit’ and the ‘Buddha Circuit’ the Gurdwara Circuit will be the latest project.
According to sources, there is also a plan to start the ‘Gandhi Circuit Special Train’ soon to make people aware of the life philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. Some more special circuits could also be started on the same lines.
The Railways, sources said, are preparing 4000 to 5000 rail coaches, which will be leased to private operators with conditions, which will be for a minimum period of at least 5 years. During this period, the operator will be responsible for the maintenance of the railway coaches, whereas, the responsibility of maintenance of the operation will be with the Railways.
According to sources, so far about 50 operators have shown interest in joining this ambitious special circuit project of the Railways.
