Vivek Express
Vivek Express ( Hindi : विवेक एक्सप्रेस ) are four pairs of Express Trains on the Indian Railways network. These trains were announced in the Railway Budget of 2011-12 by Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee. These trains were started to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Swami Vivekanand, to be held in 2013. One of the Vivek Express trains, the one from Dibrugarh Town to Kanyakumari; is the longest route on the Indian Railways network, in terms of distance and time, and is the 8th longest in the world.[1]
List of Vivek Express Trains
As of February 2012, there are 4 pairs of Vivek Express trains, they are :
- 15905/15906 - Dibrugarh Town to Kanyakumari Vivek Express
- 19567/19568 - Dwarka to Tuticorin Vivek Express
- 19027/19028 - Bandra Terminus, Mumbai to Jammu Tawi Vivek Express
- 22851/22852 - Santragachi to Mangalore Central Vivek Express
Dibrugarh Town - Kanyakumari Vivek Express
This weekly train; numbered 15905/15906, is currently the longest train route in the Indian Subcontinent. It joins Dibrugarh Town in Assam, North-East India to Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu which is the Southernmost tip of Mainland India. It travels a distance of 4287 km in 82:30 hours (almost 4 days). There are 52 halts; spanning across a total of 615 intermediate railway stations.[2]It travels through the states of Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It passes through important cities such as Guwahati, Asansol, Cuttack, Bhubaneshwar, Vishakhapatnam, Coimbatore, Ernakulam and Trivandrum. The Himsagar Express was previously the longest running train in India.[3]
Dwarka - Tuticorin Vivek Express
This too, is a weekly train; numbered 19567/19568. It connects Dwarka, Gujarat which is the Westernmost tip of India to Tuticorin, the Pearl City, which is in Tamil Nadu in South India. This train covers 3043 km in 54:25 hours. It travels through the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. This train is also religiously important, as it joins two places of religious significance; namely Lord Krishna's Dwarka and Rameshwar, which lies close to the Pearl City, Tuticorin. The train covers important cities enroute, namely Ahmedabad, Surat, Mumbai (Vasai Road, Kalyan), Pune, Bangalore (Krishnarajpuram) and Madurai.[4]
Mumbai - Jammu Tawi Vivek Express
This train seeks its origin from Bandra Terminus, one of the main stations in Mumbai. This train; 19027/19028, like other Vivek Expresses; is also a weekly train from Bandra Terminus, Mumbai to Jammu Tawi in North India. However, unlike other typical North Indian trains; this train bypasses New Delhi or Delhi NCR. It goes via Surat, Ahmedabad, Pali Marwar, Jodhpur, Merta Road, Degana, Deedwana, sujangarh, Ratangarh, Churu, Sadulpur, Hisar, Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Chakki Bank, thus bypassing Delhi NCR.
Santragachi - Mangalore Central Vivek Express
The 22851/22852 Vivek Express links Santragachi, a town in the vicinity of Howrah, Kolkata in West Bengal to Mangalore Central in Karnataka. This is also a weekly train, which comes under the Superfast Category of the Indian Railways; unlike other Vivek Expresses. This train passes through the states of West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Important cities enroute are Bhubaneshwar, Vishakhapatnam, Rajahmundry,Vijayawada ,Nellore,Coimbatore, Calicut and Kannur
Future Plans
Owing to the positive response to Vivek Express trains by the masses, the Railway Ministry is considering starting a new Vivek Express in the North to East Corridor, between Jammu Tawi and North East India. Earlier Vivek Express trains ran fom East to South, South to West, West to North and again East to South India respectively. The new North to East Vivek Express would complete the quadrilateral; and is expected to be announced in the 2012-2013 Railway Budget.
See Also
References
- ^ "Now, northeast & south come closer". The Hindu. 2011-11-20.
- ^ "Dibrugarh - Kanniyakumari Vivek Express/15906 Express Dibrugarh/DBRG to Kanniyakumari/CAPE Complete Train Route - India Rail Info". India Rail Info. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- ^ "Himsagar Express Train". IIRCTC Online. Retrieved 2011-11-21.
- ^ "Madurai-Dwaraka Vivek Express/19567". India Rail Info. Retrieved 2012-02-10.