Railways adds 116 coaches across 37 premium trains after IndiGo flight disruptions

In response to a surge in passenger demand following widespread flight cancellations, the Indian Railways has deployed 116 additional coaches across 37 premium trains, covering over 114 enhanced trips nationwide. The move aims to provide relief to travellers affected by major disruptions in air travel.

A statement from the Railway Ministry said the Southern Railway (SR) undertook the largest number of augmentations, enhancing capacity in 18 trains. “Additional Chair Car and Sleeper Class coaches have been deployed on high-demand routes. These augmentations, effective from December 6, substantially increase accommodation capacity in the southern region,” the statement said.

Northern Railway (NR) follows with upgrades on eight trains, adding 3AC and Chair Car coaches. “These measures, implemented from today, improve availability on heavily travelled northern corridors,” the ministry noted.

In the western region, the Western Railway (WR) has strengthened four high-demand trains by adding 3AC and 2AC coaches. The augmentations, effective from December 6, cater to strong passenger movement from western regions to the national capital.

The East Central Railway (ECR) has added 2AC coaches to the Rajendra Nagar–New Delhi (12309) service over five trips from December 6 to 10, enhancing capacity on the important Bihar–Delhi sector. Similarly, the East Coast Railway (ECOR) has increased capacity on Bhubaneswar–New Delhi services (Trains 20817, 20811, and 20823) by adding 2AC coaches across five trips, improving connectivity between Odisha and the capital.

Eastern Railway (ER) has implemented augmentations in three key trains, adding Sleeper Class coaches over six trips on December 7 and 8 to meet increased regional and inter-state travel demand in the east. The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has also augmented two important trains with 3AC and Sleeper coaches over eight trips each from December 6 to 13, ensuring uninterrupted capacity for travellers in the Northeast.

In addition to these enhancements, Indian Railways is operating four special train services to support passengers further. The Gorakhpur–Anand Vihar Terminal–Gorakhpur Special (05591/05592) will operate four trips between December 7 and 9, while the New Delhi–Martyr Captain Tushar Mahajan–New Delhi Reserved Vande Bharat Special (02439/02440) will run on December 6, offering fast connectivity to the Jammu region.

To meet high demand towards the western sector, the New Delhi–Mumbai Central–New Delhi Reserved Superfast Special (04002/04001) will run on December 6 and 7. Additionally, the Hazrat Nizamuddin–Thiruvananthapuram Central Reserved Superfast Special (04080) will operate one-way on December 6, providing long-distance connectivity towards the southern region.

These augmentations and special services aim to ensure that passengers affected by recent flight disruptions have reliable and comfortable travel options across India.