Himsagar Express

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Himsagar Express
Overview
Service typeExpress
First service3 October 1984; 40 years ago (1984-10-03)
Current operator(s)Southern Railways
Route
StartShri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra (SVDK)
Stops69
EndKanniyakumari (CAPE)
Distance travelled3,789 km (2,354 mi)
Average journey time71 hours 36 minutes
Service frequencyWeekly
Train number(s)16317 / 16318
On-board services
Class(es)AC 2 tier, AC 3 tier, Sleeper Class, General Unreserved
Seating arrangementsYes
Sleeping arrangementsYes
Catering facilitiesAvailable
Baggage facilitiesAvailable
Other facilitiesBelow the seats
Technical
Rolling stockICF coaches
Track gauge1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
Operating speed67 km/h (42 mph) average with halts
Route map
Himsagar Express (Jammu Tawi–Kanyakumari) route map

The 16317 / 16318 Himsagar Express is a weekly Express train of the Indian Railways running between Kanyakumari in India's southernmost state of Tamil Nadu to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra in Jammu and Kashmir- the northernmost state of India. It is currently the third-longest-running train on the Indian Railways in terms of distance and time, surpassed by the Dibrugarh–Kanyakumari Vivek Express and Thiruvananthapuram–Silchar Superfast Express. In 72 hours, the train covers a distance of 3787 km at a speed of 52 km/h, and transverses twelve of India's states halting at a total of 73 stations.[1]

History[edit]

Krishnagiri MP Dr. P. V. Periasamy's demand promoted national integration from Kanniyakumari to Kashmir through direct train service on 19-03-1979 in parliament.[2]

Route & Frequency[edit]

It runs weekly, starting every Friday at 14:05 hours from Kanyakumari, reaching Katra on Mondays at 15:20 hours.[3] It starts from Katra on Mondays at 21:55 hours and reaches Kanyakumari on Thursdays at 21:30 hours.[3] Because of this schedule, it needs just one rake to complete its entire run. There is a Slip Route of this train, running from Erode Junction to Tirunelveli Junction & Chhindwara Junction to Bhopal Junction. The train travels through the union territories and states of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Katra to Kanyakumari: There are several long halts for this train like New Delhi (150 min) and in Thiruvananthapuram Central, Ernakulam Town, Kottayam, Erode Junction, Bhopal Junction, Nagpur, Itarsi Junction, Jhansi, Gwalior Junction and Vijayawada Junction (10-15 min each).

Kanyakumari to Katra: The fastest speed is achieved near Kila Raipur (108 km/h) and the slowest speeds on the Hazrat Nizamuddin to New Delhi (24 km/h) and Bhopal Habibganj to Bhopal Junction (19 km/h) . It takes around three hours for the train to clear the Delhi area.

Traction[edit]

Both trains are hauled by an Erode / Arakkonam-based WAP-4 electric locomotive from CAPE to NDLS and handing over to a Tughlakabad-based WDP-4B / WDP-4D diesel locomotive from NDLS to SVDK and vice versa.

Coach composition[edit]

The train has 19 coaches comprising one Second AC (2AC), two Third AC (3AC), ten Sleeper class (SL), three Unreserved coaches (UR/GS), two Luggage rakes (SLR) and one Pantry car (PC).[lower-alpha 1]

Loco 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
BSicon LDER.svg SLR UR UR B2 B1 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 PC S7 S8 S9 S10 A1 UR SLR

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. The coach composition is subject to change.

References[edit]

  1. India Rail Info. "Himsagar Express/16318/ SVDK to CAPE/Timetable". India Rail Info. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  2. https://eparlib.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/2126/1/lsd_06_07_19-03-1979.pdf Page no. 150
  3. 3.0 3.1 Southern Zone Time Table July 2010, Page no 112 & Table No. 13,13A

External links[edit]