Indian Railways deploy 116 extra coaches across 37 trains to ease travel disruptions from flight cancellations

NEW DELHI: Indian Railways, in view of the surge in passenger demand following widespread flight cancellations, has taken extensive measures to ensure smooth travel and adequate availability of accommodation across the network. A total of 37 trains have been augmented with 116 additional coaches, operating over 114 augmented trips across the country, said an official release from Ministry of Railways.

According to a release, Southern Railway (SR) has carried out the highest number of augmentations, enhancing capacity in 18 trains. Additional Chair Car and Sleeper Class coaches have been deployed on high-demand routes. These augmentations, implemented from 6 December 2025 onward, substantially expand accommodation capacity in the southern region.

Northern Railway (NR) follows with augmentations on eight trains, adding 3AC and Chair Car coaches. These measures implemented today onwards enhance availability on heavily travelled northern corridors.

Western Railway (WR) has augmented four high-demand trains by adding 3AC and 2AC coaches. The augmentations, effective from December 6, 2025, cater to strong passenger movement from western regions to the national capital.

East Central Railway (ECR) has strengthened the Rajendra Nagar-New Delhi (12309) service with an additional 2AC coach over five trips between December 6-10, 2025, providing enhanced capacity on this important Bihar-Delhi sector.

East Coast Railway (ECOR) has augmented the Bhubaneswar-New Delhi services (Trains 20817/20811/20823) by adding 2AC coaches across five trips, improving connectivity between Odisha and the capital.

Eastern Railway (ER) has implemented augmentations in three key trains, adding Sleeper Class coaches over six trips on December 7-8, 2025, meeting increased regional and inter-state travel demand in the east.

Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has augmented two important trains with 3AC and Sleeper coaches over eight trips each from December 6-13, 2025, ensuring uninterrupted capacity for travellers in the Northeast.

Along with these enhancements, Indian Railways is also operating four special train services to further support passengers. The Gorakhpur – Anand Vihar Terminal – Gorakhpur Special (05591/05592) will operate four trips between December 7 and 9, 2025. The New Delhi – Martyr Captain Tushar Mahajan – New Delhi Reserved Vande Bharat Special (02439/02440) will run on December 6, 2025, providing fast and comfortable connectivity to the Jammu region.

To meet high demand towards the western sector, the New Delhi – Mumbai Central – New Delhi Reserved Superfast Special (04002/04001) will operate on December 6 and 7, 2025. Additionally, the Hazrat Nizamuddin – Thiruvananthapuram Central Reserved Superfast Special (04080) will run one-way on December 6, 2025, offering long-distance connectivity towards the southern region.

These steps, involving capacity augmentation across zones and the operation of special trains, reflect Indian Railways’ commitment to easing passenger travel, ensuring adequate accommodation, and providing timely transport options during this period of increased demand, a release said. (ANI)