Pandemic halts Palace on Wheels, Raj tourism earnings take a hit

KOTA: The Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) incurred a loss of nearly ₹3 crore as the Palace on Wheels luxury train stopped operating after the Covid-19 outbreak disrupted the flow of domestic and foreign tourists, officials said.

RTDC runs the heritage Palace on Wheels that chugs along former Rajput princedoms and Taj Mahal in Agra.

The Palace on Wheels runs from September till March, but the first luxury train of India did not receive bookings from September 2020. RTDC also tried to run the train from March-April, but could not succeed due to low bookings.

RTDC chairman Alok Gupta said the Palace on Wheels stopped running as foreign tourists stopped coming in due to cancellation of international flights after the imposition of Covid-19 lockdown last year. “The luxury train can run from September this year if everything goes well,” said Gupta.

He said RTDC reduced luxury train fares by 30% to attract domestic tourists, but the move failed to yield results. “There were very few bookings, so it was not possible to run the train.”

Luxury train staff have been shifted to RTDC units so that they do not face problems, he said. “Loss for Palace on Wheels is due to no ticket sales. RTDC earns nearly ₹3 crore from ticket sales every year, so we have lost that much income after the Covid-19 outbreak,” Gupta said.

RTDC managing director Nykia Gohain said, “Since there was no business for Palace on Wheels last year, we suffered loss.” The train chugs out of Safdarjung Railway Station, New Delhi, on a week-long run through Rajasthan every Wednesday night. The Palace on Wheels began its inaugural run on January 26, 1982 and has been a popular way of touring Rajasthan ever since.