Ram temple: Railways to run over 200 Aastha special trains to Ayodhya

Special trains to Ayodhya: The booking in special Aastha trains can only be done via the Indian Railway and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) website and app

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Ram temple inauguration: After the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony at Ram Temple on January 22, Indian Railways will launch 200 Aastha special trains. These trains will connect 66 different places from across the nation to Ayodhya, reports said.

Each train will have 22 coaches to accommodate devotees who want to visit the Ram temple. Depending on the demands of the devotees, the number of trains will be increased later, it added.

Special Aastha trains will be launched from New Delhi, Old Delhi, Nizamuddin and Anand Vihar. Apart from the national capital, the trains will also run from Agartala, Tinsukia, Barmer, Katra, Jammu, Nashik, Dehradun, Bhadrak, Khurda Road, Kottayam, Secunderabad, Hyderabad and Kazipet.

Due to security concerns, the railways have opted not to include train details in its Passenger Reservation System (PRS). However, round-trip tickets for special Aastha trains can be purchased through the Indian Railway and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) website and app.

The Indian Railways has nearly 200 special train services in the pipeline. These trains will only have operational stoppages. In addition, these trains will run from various cities for 100 days after the Ram Mandir opening ceremony.

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Here are the routes of the Aastha special trains:

Delhi

New Delhi station - Ayodhya - New Delhi Station
 

Anand Vihar - Ayodhya - Anand Vihar

Nizamuddin - Ayodhya - Nizamuddin

Old Delhi Railway station - Ayodhya Dham - Old Delhi Railway station

Maharashtra

Mumbai - Ayodhya - Mumbai

Nagpur - Ayodhya - Nagpur

Pune - Ayodhya - Pune

Wardha - Ayodhya - Wardha

Jalna - Ayodhya - Jalna

Goa - 1 Aastha Special

Telangana

Secunderabad - Ayodhya - Secunderabad

Kazipet Jn - Ayodhya - Kazipet Jn

Tamil Nadu

Chennai - Ayodhya - Chennai

Coimbatore - Ayodhya - Coimbatore

Madurai - Ayodhya - Madurai

Salem - Ayodhya - Salem

Jammu and Kashmir

Jammu- Ayodhya-Jammu

Katra - Ayodhya - Katra

Gujarat

Udhna - Ayodhya - Udhna

Vapi - Ayodhya - Vapi

Vadodara - Ayodhya - Vadodara

Valsad - Ayodhya - Valsad

Madhya Pradesh

Indore - Ayodhya - Indore

Bina - Ayodhya - Bina

Bhopal - Ayodhya - Bhopal

Jabalpur - Ayodhya - Jabalpur
 

Stations named after Lord Ram to be illuminated
 

The Indian Railways will decorate and illuminate 343 stations across the country named after Lord Ram ahead of the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony on January 22, a report by India Today said.

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Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have the highest number of stations named after Lord Ram, with 55 and 54 stations, respectively. Bihar has the third highest number of stations named after the deity.
 

Ayodhya Ram temple Pran Pratishtha
 

Preparations are in full swing in Ayodhya for the mega Pran Prathistha ceremony of Lord Ram Lalla in the newly built Ram Janmabhoomi Temple on January 22.

Week-long rituals for the Pran Pratishtha ceremony commenced on Tuesday and will culminate on January 22. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is slated to preside over the ceremonial installation of Ram Lalla. The temple will be open for 'darshan' for the general public from January 23.