Guwahati, Oct 20 (NationPress) In order to handle the significant influx of passengers and devotees during the festive seasons of Diwali and the impending Chhath Puja, the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has been running 48 special festival trains for a total of 613 trips across its network from September to December, officials reported on Monday.

NFR’s Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) Kapinjal Kishore Sharma stated that this initiative is essential to accommodate the tremendous passenger demand during the festive period. The NFR has been operating these 48 festival special trains for 613 trips across multiple routes.

These special services are designed to link key destinations such as Katihar, Sonpur, Dauram, Madhepura, Agartala, New Tinsukia, SMVT Bengaluru, Amritsar, Patna, Dibrugarh, Gorakhpur, Silchar, Kolkata, Guwahati, Ranchi, Charlapalli, Mumbai Central, Agra Cantt, Jogbani, Shalimar, and Kamakhya, among others.

The trains are scheduled to run on a daily, weekly, tri-weekly, or specific weekdays, depending on operational feasibility and passenger demand. This service aims to alleviate the excess number of passengers traveling to and from regions such as the Northeast, North Bengal, and Bihar, according to the CPRO.

Passengers are encouraged to verify detailed schedules, stops, and coach configurations from official Railway sources before embarking on their journey.

Chhath Puja, celebrated across many Northeastern states annually, attracts thousands of devotees from all over India, including international visitors, to the historic Tripura Sundari temple in Udaipur, Gomati district, and the Kamakhya temple in Guwahati. Both temples are esteemed Shakti Peethas within Hindu culture.

The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) operates within the Northeastern states as well as in seven districts of West Bengal and five districts of northern Bihar, managing over 7,362 Track Kilometres (TKM) in its service area.