Responding to heavy passenger demand between Puri in Odisha and Surat in Gujarat, Indian Railways will launch a new weekly Amrit Bharat Express connecting Brahmapur in Odisha with Udhna (Surat) in Gujarat, reported The Times Of India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the inaugural service (Train No. 09022) on 27 September from Brahmapur as a special run.
Currently, a weekly Jogbani–Erode Amrit Bharat Express (Train No. 16601/16602) already passes through Nagpur.
This new service will become the second of its kind on the route, giving thousands of unreserved travellers another affordable option.
The regular operation will run as Train No. 19021/19022 Brahmapur–Udhna–Brahmapur Weekly Amrit Bharat Express.
Train No. 19021 will depart Udhna every Sunday at 7.40 am and reach Nagpur at 7.40 pm the same day.
Train No. 19022 will leave Brahmapur every Monday at 11.45 pm, arriving in Udhna at 8.45 am on Wednesday.
The train from Udhna will reach Nagpur at 7.40 pm every Sunday, while the train from Brahmapur will arrive at 8pm every Tuesday.
During its inaugural journey, the train will halt at major stations including Udhna, Bardoli, Vyara, Navapur, Nandurbar, Dondaicha, Sindkheda, Amalner, Dharangaon, Jalgaon, Bhusaval, Malkapur, Akola, Badnera, Wardha, Nagpur (arrival 07:00/departure 07:15), Gondia, Durg, Raipur, Mahasamund, Khariar Road, Kantabanji, Titlagarh, Kesinga, Muniguda, Rayagada, Parvatipuram, Bobbili, Vizianagaram, Srikakulam, Palasa, and Brahmapur.
The train will operate with 22 modern LHB Amrit Bharat coaches, consisting of 8 Sleeper class, 11 General second class, 1 Pantry car, and 2 SLR coaches.