Railway rolls out summer special trains in Bengal to ease holiday rush


New Delhi, April 5 (IANS) Indian Railways will operate special fare summer trains between Malda Town and Udhna to manage increased passenger traffic during the peak travel season, officials said on Sunday.

As part of the arrangement, train numbers 09033/09034 Malda Town–Udhna Special services will run on a fixed schedule between April and July, covering a journey of approximately 38 hours and offering a mix of air-conditioned, sleeper and general class coaches to accommodate different categories of passengers.

According to the schedule, the 09033 Udhna–Malda Town Special will depart from Udhna at 11 p.m. every Thursday from April 9 to July 23, completing a total of 16 trips, and will reach Malda Town at 11:00 a.m. on the third day.

In the return direction, the 09034 Malda Town–Udhna Special will leave Malda Town at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday between April 12 and July 26, also operating 16 trips, and is scheduled to arrive at Udhna at 1:20 a.m. on the third day.

During its journey under the Eastern Railway jurisdiction, the train will halt at several key stations in both directions, including New Farakka, Barharwa, Sahibganj, Kahalgaon, Bhagalpur, Sultanganj, Jamalpur and Abhaipur.

The rake composition will include General Second Class, Sleeper Class and air-conditioned accommodations to cater to varied passenger needs.

Officials added that the date for opening bookings for this particular special train will be announced shortly.

In a broader initiative to handle the surge in travel demand during the summer months, Indian Railways is operating a total of 1,484 summer special train services in 2026. This includes 749 reserved services and 735 unreserved trains connecting major routes across the country.

These special services will run from April to July and will primarily focus on high-demand sectors such as Mumbai–Banaras, Delhi–Katra and Pune–Danapur, among others.

The extensive list of special trains also covers short- and medium-distance routes like Mumbai–Pune, Mumbai–Kolhapur and Pune–Solapur, in addition to long-distance connections from Mumbai to destinations including Gorakhpur and Ballia.

Bookings for most of these special trains are available through the IRCTC Website as well as at computerised reservation centres.

Updated and detailed information regarding these services is also being made available through official railway channels.

Passengers have been advised to check real-time updates on train schedules, routes and seat availability through the NTES App or the National Train Enquiry System before planning their journey.

–IANS

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