KOZHIKODE: Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed flagged off the inaugural special of the KozhikodeThiruvananthapuram Jan Shatabdi Express at the railway station here on Thursday.
The train, that will ply via Kottayam, is the last in the series of new services introduced in the route by Ahamed, who stepped down as the Minister of State for Railways after accepting a portfolio in the Ministry of External Affairs.
The Jan Shatabdi is the second of its kind on the KozhikodeThiruvananthapuram route, after the first was extended to Kozhikode via Alappuzha in 2009.
The train, numbered 12081/12082, will start from Kozhikode on all days except Wednesdays and Sundays.
It is scheduled to depart at 6.15 a.m. from the station here and will stop at eight other stations before halting at Thiruvananthapuram, where it is expected to reach at 13.45p.m. The return service will be available on all days except Tuesdays and Saturdays.
The Jan Shatabdi has three AC chair cars, 13 second class chair cars and two second class chair carcum brake van.