Chhath and Diwali Special Trains: Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announces 12,500 coaches for festive season

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday announced an addition of coaches and special trains on the occasion of Chaath puja and Diwali across the country to ensure ease of travel for passengers.

Vaishnaw said, "This festive season, General Coach increased in 108 trains. 12,500 coaches sanctioned for Chhath puja and Diwali special trains. In 2024-25, a total of 5,975 trains have been notified till today. This will facilitate more than 1 crore passengers to go home during the Puja rush. In 2023-24 a total of 4,429 special trains ran during the festive season."

Earlier on September 24, Aswhini Vaishnaw had inspected the Kavach 4.0 in Rajasthan and said that Kavach 4.0 has started for the first time in India from Sawai Madhopur, adding that in the coming years, 10 thousand locomotives will be covered by Kavach.

"Kavach 4.0 has started for the first time in India from Sawai Madhopur... The work of installing armour in this area has been completed, this is just the beginning, in the coming years, 10 thousand locomotives will be covered with armour and 9 thousand kilometres of additional armour work will be done," Vaishnaw told reporters.

Kavach is an indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system. It is a highly technology-intensive system, which requires safety certification of the highest order.

Kavach aids the loco pilot in trains running within specified speed limits by automatic application of brakes in case the loco pilot fails to do so and it also helps the train safely run during inclement weather.

On September 20, Vaishnaw had inaugurated the Bharat Gaurav Train for Bharat-Nepal Yatra at the Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station in Delhi on Friday and said that tourists will be able to experience the rich cultural heritage shared by India and Nepal.