Guwahati: Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist train, a specially designed train for people to explore the states in the Northeast including Assam, will arrive in Guwahati from New Delhi on March 23.
The train tour will start from Safdarjung railway station in Delhi on March 21 and arrive at Guwahati Railway station on March 23, 2023, said an NF Railway official.
During the 15-day tour, it will cover Guwahati, Sivasagar, Furkating and Kaziranga in Assam, Unakoti, Agartala and Udaipur in Tripura, Dimapur and Kohima in Nagaland and Shillong and Cherrapunji in Meghalaya.
“The Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist train no. 00412 will depart from Delhi Safdarjung station at 15:20 hours on March 21, 2023,” NF RailwaySabyasachi De.
He said that tourists can board and de-board at Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Tundla, Etawah, Kanpur and Lucknow stations.
“Spanning over 14 nights and 15 days, the first halt of this train will be at Guwahati on March 23, 2023, where tourists will visit Kamakhya Temple followed by Umananda Temple and a sunset cruise on the Brahmaputra,” Sabyasachi De said.
De said this train will further depart on an overnight journey to reach Naharlagun Railway Station on March 25, 2023, which is 30 km from the next destination Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh.
“After that, the next city to explore is Sivasagar – the old capital of the Ahom Kingdom in the Eastern part of Assam on March 26, 2023. The famous Sivadol at Sivasagar is a part of the itinerary besides other heritage sites. Further, the tea gardens at Jorhat and an overnight stay at Kaziranga followed by an early morning jungle safari at Kaziranga National Park will be experienced by the tourists,” he further added.
He said, “The Deluxe AC Tourist Train next departs from the Furkating Railway Station on March 27, 2023, for the state of Tripura where the sightseeing of the famous heritage site of Unakoti and Agartala including the famous Ujjayanta Palace will happen.”
On the next day, the Neermahal palace and Tripura Sundari mandir at Udaipur will be covered in the itinerary. Post Tripura, on March 29, 2023, the train departs for Dimapur for visiting the state of Nagaland.
From Dimapur station, tourists will be taken to Kohima by bus for visiting the local sites. The final halt for the tourist train will be at Guwahati on April 1, 2023. Tourists will be taken to Shillong, the capital city of Meghalaya by road with a pit stop at the majestic Umium Lake enroute.
The next day starts with an excursion to Cherrapunji nestled in the East Khasi Hills. Shillong Peak, Elephant Falls, Nawkhalikai falls and Mawsmai caves are a part of the day’s sightseeing.
“From Cherrapunji the tourists travel back to Guwahati Station to board the train for the return train journey on April 2, 2023, to reach Delhi Safdarjung station at 13:30 hours on April 4, 2023,” Sabyasachi De said.
The NF Railway CPRO said, “The modern Deluxe AC Tourist Train has two fine dining restaurants and a kitchen.”
“The fully air-conditioned train provides three types of accommodation viz. AC I, AC IIand AC III. The train has enhanced security features like CCTV cameras, electronic safes and dedicated security guards appointed for each coach” De added.