Ramakanta Biswas

Putting an end to a prolonged demand, train service finally commenced between Baripada of Mayurbhanj and the pilgrim town of Puri on Friday.

Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti and Tribal Affairs Bishweswar Tudu flagged off the train service today. 

Initially the train will leave Baripada and reach Puri chugging through various stations like Balasore, Bhadrak, Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. As per the schedule, the train will depart from Baripada on Thursday night at 11.50 am and arrive at Puri station at 7 am the next day.

Similarly, on return journey, the train will leave Puri station at 11.50 pm on Friday night and reach Baripada at 7 am on Saturday. 
Inaugurating the train service which will initially run once in a week, Union Minister Tudu said the Railways is mulling extension of the train service on a daily basis in the coming days. 

“The commencement of the train service is a very good news for the residents of Mayurbhanj. We were in discussion with the Railway ministry for a long time over the demand for services on the route.”

“The train will run on weekly mode till April and after that, it will ply on a regular basis following the completion of the modalities. The timings of the train may also be changed for convenience of passengers,” he added.

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