KOLKATA: Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday flagged off six long-distance trains in a single day in Howrah railway station including the weekly New Delhi Howrah Yuba Express. For the first time in the history of Indian Railways an express train __ Yuba Express was dedicated to the youth of the country.
The fare for the air-conditioned chair car upto 1000 km would be Rs 299 and for 2500 km it would be Rs 399. Sixty percent of the seats in the Yuba Express would be reserved for the youths between the age of 18 and 45.
Mamata said that another Yuba Express would be flagged off on January 12 on the birth day of Swami Vivekananda. The train will ply between New Delhi and Mumbai.
The other five trains she had flagged off were Howrah-Yesvantpur weekly Duronto Express (non stop), Howrah-Purulia Bi- Weekly Express, Howrah-Haridwar Express (five days a week), Kolkata-Bikaner Weekly Express and Sealdah-Amritsar Weekly Express.
Mamata said that since a large number of students go to Bangalore for studies, the Railway Ministry had decided to ply the train without any stoppage between Howrah and Yesvantpur. Commemorating the Jallianwala Bagh incident she named the Sealdah- Amritsar Weekly Express as Jallianwala Bagh Express, Howrah-Haridwar Express as Kumbho Express, and Kolkata-Bikaner Weekly Express as Pratap Express.