VIJAYAWADA: In view of summer vacation, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a part of Indian Railways, will operate three Bharat Darshan special tourist trains to three different tourist circuits in the country, said IRCTC joint general manager N Sanjeevaiah on Monday.Addressing a press conference here, Sanjeevaiah said that the first tourist ‘package’ train, titled ‘Nava Jyotirlinga Yatra’, will begin its journey from Renigunta in Chittoor district on April 3 (00.05 hours), Tuesday and will return to Vijayawada on April 14. The ‘package’ will cover Bhimashankar (near Pune), Nageshwar (near Dwarka), Somnath (near Saurashtra), Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain), Omkareshwar (in Madhya Pradesh), Tryambakeshwar (near Nashik), Grishneshwar (near Aurangabad), Aundha Nagnath (near Nanded) and Vaidyanath (near Parli).
The cost of ticket, per person, is Rs 13,020 for sleeper class and Rs 15,540 for AC III tier. The price includes the cost for night stay, food, transport, tour escort and security on train. The second tourist ‘package’ train, titled ‘ Ganga Yamuna Yatra’, will be flagged off from Renigunta on April 18 (00.05 hours), Wednesday and will return to Secunderabad on April 29. The ‘package’ will cover Agra, Mathura, New Delhi, Haridwar, Ayodhya, Prayag, Varanasi and Gaya. The cost of ticket, per person, is Rs11,340 for sleeper class and Rs 13,860 for AC III tier. The price includes the cost for night stay, food, transport, tour escort and security on train.
Disclosing the details of the third tourist ‘package’ train, titled ‘Dakshina Bharat Yatra’, Sanjeevaiah said that the train will begin its journey from Secunderabad on May 4 (00.05 hours), Friday and will return to Vijayawada on May 12. The ‘package’ will cover Tiruchirappalli, Rameswaram, Madurai, Kanyakumari, Trivandrum, Guruvayur, Sripuram Golden Temple, Tirupati and Srikalahasti. The cost of ticket, per person, is Rs 8,505 for sleeper class and Rs 10,395 for AC III tier. The price includes cost for night stay, food, transport, tour escort and security on train.
For ticket booking, interested persons can contact IRCTC zonal office on 040-27702407, 9701360701, 9701360682, Secunderabad railway station (9701360690), Paryatak Bhavan, Secunderabad, (9701360698), Vijayawada (9701360615) or on website www.irctctourism.com, he said.
K Madusudhana Rao , IRCTC Vijayawada manager was also present.