Northern Railway Strengthens Festival Connectivity With New Special Trains Linking Punjab and Eastern India

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Northern Railway is improving connectivity for the festival travel season in 2026 by starting new Reservation Special trains from Amritsar to Kolkata and Barauni. Northern Railway wants to provide extra services for the growing demand for passenger travel during the festive season. It will provide customers traveling long distances between major regions of the country with extra travel options, greater seating capacity, and shorter travel times. The special trains will run from October to December 2026. These special trains will help manage the busy traffic on the Indian Railways during the festive season.

Northern Railway is strengthening its festival travel network by introducing additional reserved special train services connecting Amritsar with Kolkata and Barauni during the 2026 festive season. The newly announced services will operate between October and December 2026, providing extra rail capacity for passengers travelling between Punjab and eastern India during a period of traditionally high travel demand.

The festival special trains have been planned to offer passengers more convenient travel choices during the holiday rush, when railway routes often experience increased bookings due to family visits, religious journeys and seasonal celebrations. The services will include multiple accommodation categories, ranging from air-conditioned coaches to sleeper and general class facilities.

Amritsar Kolkata Special Train To Provide Additional Connectivity During Festive Rush

To improve travel options between Punjab and West Bengal, Northern Railway will operate the Amritsar–Kolkata–Amritsar Reserved Festival Special Express under Train Nos. 04624 and 04623.

The service from Amritsar to Kolkata will operate as Train No. 04624 every Wednesday from October 7 until November 25, 2026. The train will begin its journey from Amritsar at 8:10 PM and arrive at Kolkata at 3:00 PM after travelling for approximately 42 hours and 50 minutes.

The return journey from Kolkata to Amritsar will be operated as Train No. 04623 every Saturday from October 10 to November 28, 2026. The train will depart Kolkata at 4:45 AM and reach Amritsar at 9:05 PM, completing the journey in nearly 40 hours and 20 minutes.

The special service will be equipped with a balanced coach arrangement to meet the requirements of different passenger groups. The train will include one AC 2-Tier coach, two AC 3-Tier coaches, nine Sleeper Class coaches and six General Class coaches, providing a mix of premium and affordable travel options.

Amritsar Barauni Festival Service Strengthens Eastbound Rail Access

Northern Railway will also introduce a separate festival special service between Amritsar and Barauni to support increased passenger movement towards Bihar during the holiday period.

The Amritsar–Barauni–Amritsar Reserved Festival Special Express, operating as Train Nos. 04668 and 04667, will run additional services between October and December 2026.

Train No. 04668 will operate from Amritsar to Barauni every Sunday from October 4 to November 29, 2026. The train will complete nine trips, leaving Amritsar at 8:10 PM and reaching Barauni at 2:10 AM after a journey of around 30 hours.

The return service, Train No. 04667, will run every Tuesday from Barauni to Amritsar between October 6 and December 1, 2026. It will depart Barauni at 5:05 AM and arrive at Amritsar at 1:50 PM after approximately 32 hours and 45 minutes.

The train will feature the same passenger-friendly coach structure, including one AC 2-Tier coach, two AC 3-Tier coaches, nine Sleeper Class coaches and six General Class coaches.

Extra Train Services Aim To Ease Pressure During Peak Holiday Travel Period

The festive season is one of the busiest periods for railway travel across India, with millions of passengers travelling between cities and states for celebrations, family reunions and cultural events. Additional special trains help increase seat availability and provide passengers with more flexibility when planning their journeys.

By adding extra services on the Amritsar–Kolkata and Amritsar–Barauni routes, Northern Railway is enhancing connectivity between northern and eastern regions during the high-demand travel window. The special operations will allow passengers to access additional reserved travel options while reducing dependence on limited regular services.

Festival trains will operate for a short period of time over the 2026 holiday season to help transfer passengers along long distance routes. There will be a range of categories of coaches from which passengers can choose and so a large range of passengers will be accommodated. There will be a reliable train service to help passengers get to their destinations around the festive season.

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