Indian Railways has added 116 extra coaches to 37 trains across multiple zones to manage the sudden rise in passengers caused by widespread flight cancellations, per a PIB release. The move expands capacity across 114 augmented trips, helping stabilise travel during the ongoing disruption.
Southern Railway carried out the largest deployment, strengthening 18 trains with additional Chair Car and Sleeper Class coaches from December 6. Northern Railway followed with a similar augmentation in eight trains, including 3AC and Chair Car coaches, to ease pressure on heavily busy northern routes. Western Railways also increased capacity in four high-demand services by adding 2AC and 3AC coaches from December 6.
Major long-distance routes strengthened, train numbers and details released
1. Train number- 12309- Rajendra Nagar-New Delhi (ECR): Additional 2AC coaches over five trips from December 6 to 10.
2. Train number-20817/20823/20811-Bhubaneswar-New Delhi (ECOR): Extra 2AC coaches have been added across five trips.
In addition to these listed trains, the Railways confirmed zone-wise expansion across several services-
Southern Railway-18 trains
Eastern Railway-3 trains
Northeast Frontier Railway-2 trains
Northern Railway-8 trains
Western Railway-4 trains
In the eastern region, Eastern Railway added Sleeper Class coaches to three major trains over six trips from December 7 to 8. Similarly, Northeast Frontier Railway strengthened two key services by adding 3AC and Sleeper Class coaches over eight trips between December 6-13.
These zone-wise enhancement measures were taken in direct response to the increase in train bookings after IndiGo flight cancellations.
To support travellers, the Railway is running four special trains:
1. 05591/05592-Gorakhpur-Anandpur Vihar-Terminal-Gorakhpur Special (four trips, December 7 to 9).
2. 04080-Hazrat Nizamuddin-Thiruvanthapuram Central Reserve Superfast Special (This train is one way, December 6).
3. 04002/04001-New Delhi-Mumbai Central-New Delhi Reserved Superfast Special (December 6-7).
4. 02439/02440-New Delhi-Martyr Captain Tushar Mahajan-New Delhi Reserved Vande Bharat Special (December 6).
The Railways aim to ensure timely travel, proper accommodation and uninterrupted mobility during a surge in demand.