BHUBANESWAR: The Railway Board has approved a proposal for extension of the Gorakhpur-Hatia-Gorakhpur Maurya Express till Sambalpur. This will enable people of western Odisha to travel by train to Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh.
The daily express which terminates at Hatia will now be extended till Sambalpur with stoppages at Rourkela and Jharsuguda, said a notification of South Eastern Railway.
As per the tentative time table, 15028 Gorakhpur-Hatia Maurya Express will arrive at Sambalpur at 1.50 pm and the 15027 Hatia-Gorakhpur Express will depart from Sambalpur at 9.35 am.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had written to his cabinet colleague and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on December 9, 2022, and on January 03, 2024, requesting for extension of the Maurya Express till Sambalpur.
With the extension of Maurya Express, people of Sambalpur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, and nearby districts will benefit, Pradhan said. Around four lakh people from Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh reside in western Odisha and around 1.5 lakh stay in Sambalpur alone.
These people were facing difficulties in going to their native places due to absence of a direct train. Pradhan thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the railway minister for fulfilling the demands of people.