NE BUSINESS BUREAU
CHENNAI, NOV 10
The Southern Railway on Friday announced it has recorded a revenue of Rs.34 Crores from the operation of 50 Bharat Gaurav trains. The 50th Bharat Gaurav train “Ganga Snana Yatra’ Diwali Special service started from Kochuveli on Thursday to Prayagraj- Varanasi, on a round trip service to passengers.
- BGT trips covered 2,26,489 Kms in 415 days benefitting 24,848 tourists/pilgrims
- The 50th Bharat Gaurav train “Ganga Snana Yatra’ Diwali Special service started from Kochuveli on Thursday to Prayagraj- Varanasi, on a round trip service to passengers
- Thus, with the increasing patronage, Bharat Gaurav scheme leverages the core strengths of the tourism sector to run theme-based trains to tap the vast tourist potential of India
🚆✨ Celebrating 50 remarkable journeys with Southern Railway's #BharatGauravTrains
From covering 2,26,489 km to welcoming 24,848 happy tourists, and generating Rs 34 Crores in revenue.
Here's to milestones and many more memorable journeys ahead! 🎉 #Southernrailway pic.twitter.com/OtawBIpukm
— Southern Railway (@GMSRailway) November 10, 2023
With the objective of showcasing India’s rich cultural heritage and magnificent historical places to the people of India and the world, Indian Railways introduced the “Bharat Gaurav Trains” scheme with effect from November 23, 2021.
In Southern Railway, the first service of the theme-based Bharat Gaurav roundtrip train service from Coimbatore North to Sainagar Shirdi was operated on 14.06.2022. So far, Southern Railway has operated a total of 50 tour itineraries till date.
Significant milestones of SR’s Bharat Gaurav Trains
The 50 Bharat Gaurav Train services operated by Southern Railway covered a distance of 2,26,489 Kms in 415 days. Benefiting 24,848 passengers/tourists/pilgrims, the Bharat Gaurav Trains covered popular tourist and pilgrimage destinations like Sai Nagar Shirdi, Kashi, Prayagraj, New Delhi, Mathura, Agra, Triveni Sangam, Varanasi Temple visit (Kasi Viswanath, Kasi Visalatchi, Annapoorani), Darshan of Sri Rama (Divya Desam), Darshan of Sri Devaraja Perumal), Bathe in Ganges, Manasadevi Mandir, Harikipauri, Akshardham, Darshan of Krishna Bhoomi, Govardhan, Gokulam, Parlivaidhyanath, Somnath, Hyderabad, Manthralayam, Kumbakonam, Kochi, Gaya, Ayodhya, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kolkata, Puri, Mysore, Hampi, Ajanta/Ellora caves, Goa, Ekta Nagar, Statue of Unity at Kevadia in Gujarat, Haridwar, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Rameshwaram, Madurai and Kodaikanal.
Southern Railway recorded a revenue of Rs.34 Crores from the operation of these 50 Bharat Gaurav trains apart from annual charges as was applicable. The Zone had allotted a total of 7 LHB rakes to the registered service providers.
Registered Service Providers
Presently, four Registered Service Providers (RSPs) are actively operating Bharat Gaurav Trains. Including these four RSPs, there are 11 entities whose applications have been accepted as Registered Service Providers (RSPs) through BGT online portal.
‘M’ and ‘C’ Property Development P. Ltd., Coimbatore has operated 12 trips of Bharat Gaurav Trains, M/s. Travel Times (India) P. Ltd., Chennai has run 10 trips, IRCTC/South Zone, Chennai has operated 4 trips while M/s. SRMPR Global Railways Pvt. Ltd., Chennai has operated 2 trips of Bharat Gaurav train services so far.
Value-added services
The Service Provider also provides value-added services like food and beverages, hotel accommodations, transport arrangements for local sightseeing, tour guides etc.
Thus, with the increasing patronage, Bharat Gaurav scheme leverages the core strengths of the tourism sector to run theme-based trains to tap the vast tourist potential of India.
