THEN AND NOW: THE TRAIN OVER THE YEARS

March 1969

First Rajdhani started between Howrah and Delhi

120km/hr

Rajdhani’s speed then. Travel time between Howrah and Delhi cut to about 17 hours, from 24 hours. The train’s speed now is 130 km/hr

96 km/hr

Was the cap on train speed on the broad gauge before the introduction of the Rajdhani

~65 lakhs

was spent by the Railways for turning out the Rajdhani Express

3 stops

Made by the train then between Howrah and Delhi – at Kanpur, Mughalsarai and Gomoh. Now it also stops at Asansol, Dhanbad, Parasnath, Gaya and Allahabad, but not Gomoh.

~90

Was the fare for the chair car of the Rajdhani in 1969. The sleeper fare was ₹290. The minimum fare on the Howrah-Delhi Rajdhani now is more than ₹ 2,000.

9 coaches

were there in the Rajdhani when the train was launched. The Howrah-Delhi Rajdhani now has 20 coaches.

The original Rajdhani coaches were built at Integral Coach Factory, Perambur. Since February 2006, the coaches are manufactured under licence from LHB, Germany, at Kapurthala. These coaches offer more accommodation and better amenities

The Howrah Rajdhani was upgraded to ‘Swarna’ standard in 2017, a scheme under which better facilities are offered to passengers

The original route of the HowrahDelhi Rajdhani was via Gaya. However, later the service on Sunday was made via Patna.

The second route on which the Rajdhani was introduced was between Mumbai and Delhi. The Rajdhani series of trains now connects Delhi to more than 10 other destinations. In 2000, West Bengal got a second Rajdhani, connecting Sealdah to New Delhi.