Rajdhani Express
The Rajdhani Express is a series of passenger train service in India operated by Indian Railways connecting the national capital New Delhi with the capitals or largest city of various states. The word Rajdhani has been derived from the Devanagri script, which means Capital in English. Apart from that the word Rajdhani means Capital in many languages as spoken in India.[1][2]. This series of trains regularly gets the highest priority in the Indian Railways network and is considered a prestigious and premium train.
| Rajdhani Express | |
|---|---|
 New coaches of Patna Rajdhani Express painted with Madhubani art | |
| Overview | |
| Service type | Connecting various state capitals with Delhi |
| Status | Operating |
| First service | March 3, 1969 |
| Current operator(s) | Indian Railways |
| Website | http://indianrail.gov.in |
| Route | |
| Train number(s) | 24 |
| On-board services | |
| Class(es) | First Class AC, AC 2-tier, AC 3-tier |
| Seating arrangements | Yes |
| Sleeping arrangements | Yes |
| Catering facilities | On-board catering |
| Observation facilities | Large windows |
| Entertainment facilities | Electric outlets Reading Lights |
| Baggage facilities | Underseat |
| Other facilities | Bedrolls Passenger Information System |
| Technical | |
| Rolling stock | LHB rakes |
| Track gauge | Indian Gauge 1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) |
| Operating speed | Maximum 130–140 km/h (81–87 mph) |
| Track owner(s) | Indian Railways |
History
In the Railway Budget of 1969-70, an introduction of a new superfast train was done which will connect Delhi to Kolkata in less than 18 hours. Until then, the fastest trains implying between these two cities usually takes more than 18 hours. Thus on 1 March 1969, the first Rajdhani Express left from New Delhi to Howrah at 1730 hrs and arrived at its destination at 1050 hrs on next day. Thus completing its total journey 1451 km in a record time of 17 hours 20 minutes. The return Rajdhani Express left Howrah Junction at 1700 hrs and arrived at New Delhi on its next day at 1020 hrs. The initial maximum speed of the Howrah Rajdhani Express was 100 km/hr. Till 1972, Howrah Rajdhani Express was the only Rajdhani Express in India, until in 1972 when Indian Railways decided to introduced Bombay Rajdhani, now Mumbai Rajdhani Express between Mumbai Central and New Delhi. Till 1992, there were only two Rajdhani Express in India. Later on with subsequent development of the tracks other Rajdhani Express were introduced gradually. The last Rajdhani Express to be introduced as of now was the Mumbai CSMT–Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani Express on 19 January 2019.
Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Mizoram, Uttrakhand, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Manipur, Nagaland and Punjab are the only states without a Rajdhani express terminating/originating from any of its major cities.
About
Rajdhani express gets the highest priority on the Indian railway network.[3] They are fully air-conditioned. Passengers are served optional meals (food price included in the train fare) during the journey. Depending on the duration and timings of the journey, these could include morning tea, breakfast, lunch, high tea and dinner.[3] All Rajdhani Express trains offer three classes of accommodation: AC First Class (1A) with 2-berth and 4-berth coupès (with locking facility for privacy), AC 2-tier (2T) with open bays (4 berths/bay + 2 berths on the other side of the aisle of each bay), provided with curtains for privacy, and AC 3-tier (3T) with open bays (6 berths/bay + 2 berths on the other side of the aisle of each bay) without curtains.
Currently there are 24 pairs of trains, connecting New Delhi to important cities across the country. These trains have fewer stops than other express trains and halt only at prominent stations. Recently Dynamic pricing has been introduced on all Rajdhani express trains.
Routes
There are currently 24 operational pairs of Rajdhani Express:[4][5]
| State | Terminal Station in Delhi | Train Name | Train No. | Distance | Average Speed | Inauguration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assam | New Delhi | Dibrugarh Town Rajdhani Express (via Barauni) | 12423/12424 | 2,434 km (1,512 mi) | 75 km/h (47 mph) | 1996 |
| New Delhi | Dibrugarh Town Rajdhani Express (via Hajipur) | 20505/20506 | 2,458 km (1,527 mi) | 68 km/h (42 mph) | 1999 | |
| New Delhi | Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express (via Muzzafarpur) | 20503/20504 | 2,452 km (1,524 mi) | 68 km/h (42 mph) | 2010 | |
| Bihar | New Delhi | Patna Rajdhani | 12309/12310 | 998 km (620 mi) | 83 km/h (52 mph) | 1996 |
| Chhattisgarh | New Delhi | Bilaspur Rajdhani | 12441/12442 | 1,501 km (933 mi) | 74 km/h (46 mph) | 2001 |
| Goa | Hazrat Nizamuddin | Madgaon Rajdhani | 22413/22414 | 2,094 km (1,301 mi) | 71 km/h (44 mph) | 2015 |
| Gujarat | New Delhi | Swarna Jayanti Rajdhani | 12957/12958 | 934 km (580 mi) | 68 km/h (42 mph) | 1998 |
| Jammu and Kashmir | New Delhi | Jammu Tawi Rajdhani | 12425/12426 | 582 km (362 mi) | 64 km/h (40 mph) | 1994 |
| Jharkhand | New Delhi | Ranchi Rajdhani (via Bokaro) | 20839/20840 | 1,305 km (811 mi) | 74 km/h (46 mph) | 2001 |
| New Delhi | Ranchi Rajdhani (via Daltonganj) | 12453/12454 | 1,341 km (833 mi) | 76 km/h (47 mph) | 2006 | |
| Karnataka | Hazrat Nizamuddin | Bengaluru Rajdhani | 22691/22692 | 2,365 km (1,470 mi) | 70 km/h (43 mph) | 1992 |
| Kerala | Hazrat Nizamuddin | Thiruvananthapuram Rajdhani | 12431/12432 | 3,149 km (1,957 mi) | 68 km/h (42 mph) | 1993 |
| Maharashtra | New Delhi | Mumbai Rajdhani | 12951/12952 | 1,384 km (860 mi) km | 88 km/h (55 mph) | 1972 |
| Hazrat Nizamuddin | August Kranti Rajdhani | 12953/12954 | 1,377 km (856 mi) | 79 km/h (49 mph) | 1992 | |
| Hazrat Nizamuddin | Mumbai CSMT Rajdhani | 22221/22222 | 1,535 km (954 mi) | 86 km/h (53 mph) | 2019 | |
| Odisha | New Delhi | Bhubaneswar Rajdhani (via Adra) | 22811/22812 | 1,723 km (1,071 mi) | 76 km/h (47 mph) | 1994[6] |
| New Delhi | Bhubaneswar Rajdhani (via Bokaro) | 22823/22824 | 1,800 km (1,100 mi) | 74 km/h (46 mph) | 2003[7] | |
| New Delhi | Bhubaneswar Rajdhani (via Sambalpur) | 20817/20818 | 1,914 km (1,189 mi) | 71 km/h (44 mph) | 2018 | |
| Tamil Nadu | Hazrat Nizamuddin | Chennai Rajdhani | 12433/12434 | 2,175 km (1,351 mi) | 77 km/h (48 mph) | 1993 |
| Telangana | Hazrat Nizamuddin | Secunderabad Rajdhani | 12437/12438 | 1,661 km (1,032 mi) | 76 km/h (47 mph) | 2002 |
| Tripura | Anand Vihar Terminal | Agartala Rajdhani | 20501/20502 | 2,421 km (1,504 mi) | 59 km/h (37 mph) | 2017 |
| West Bengal | New Delhi | Howrah Rajdhani (via Gaya) | 12301/12302 | 1,447 km (899 mi) | 86 km/h (53 mph) | 1969 |
| New Delhi | Howrah Rajdhani (via Patna) | 12305/12306 | 1,530 km (950 mi) | 79 km/h (49 mph) | ||
| New Delhi | Sealdah Rajdhani | 12313/12314 | 1,453 km (903 mi) | 83 km/h (52 mph) | 2000 |
Incidents
- On 25 June 2014, at least four passengers were killed and eight injured when the New Delhi-Dibrugarh Rajdhani Express derailed at Goldin Ganj station near Chapra in suspected sabotage by Maoists. The train was heading towards Dibrugarh.[8]
- On the morning of 14th Sept 2017, at around 6.00 a.m. IST, a coach of the New Delhi-Ranchi Rajdhani Express derailed at the New Delhi station. According to railway spokesperson, no one was injured in the incident.[9]
- On 09 September 2002. At least 130 people were killed in an accident when the Howrah New Delhi Rajdhani derailed near Rafiganj, which was reportedly due to sabotage by a local Maoist terrorist group, the Naxalites.
See also
References
- "Top 10 Highest Priority Trains of Indian Railways Network". WalkthroughIndia.com. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- "Highest Priority Trains of Indian Railways". erail.in. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- "Rajdhani Express and Duronto Express Trains". MakeMyTrip. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
- "List of all Rajdhani Express trains". etrain.info. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- "Rajdhani Express Trains - Railway Enquiry". indiarailinfo.com. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
- Rail Budget 1994-95
- Rail Budget 2003-04
- "Rajdhani Express derails near Chhapra in Bihar; Railway suspects 'sabotage'". timesofindia-economictimes. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
- "Rajdhani Express coach derails at New Delhi Railway Station". timesofindia-indiatimes. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rajdhani Express. |
- Rajdhani: A symbol of luxury, aspiration and awe
- The Rajdhani class of trains: A chronology from 1969
- List of all Rajdhani Express on India Rail Info
- List of all Rajdhani Express on eTrain Info
- Menu of Meals served by IRCTC
- What it takes to introduce a Rajdhani
|
