Shatabdi Express Info
Shatabdi Expresses are a series of superfast passenger
trains which are being operated by Indian Railways, to serve as
connections between Metro towns and important cities and business
centers. Shatabdi Expresses are day trains and they return to the
station of origin, the same day.
Shatabdi and Rajdhani Express
are the fastest trains in India, and Indian Railways considers them to
be prestigious trains. While the Shatabdi Express series of trains run
over short distances, Rajdhani Expresses are long-distance trains
connecting Delhi to various state capitals.
The train was
considered a landmark when it was introduced in India in 1988. In fact,
it was criticized heavily by a section of society for its luxury in a
poor country. However, with the passage of time, the train has fallen
far below global standards of luxury and speed.
Shatabdi
Expresses offer fast connectivity with very few stops in between. They
are fully air-conditioned and of a much higher standard than most Indian
rail coaches. Shatabdi Express travelers are provided with snacks,
breakfast/meals, coffee/tea, a one-litre water bottle provided by the
railways owned and operated subsidiary "Rail Neer(literal
translation water)", and juice.
The Shatabdi Express is
the fastest train of India, and it runs at an average speed of around
110 km/h. The New Delhi-Bhopal Shatabdi clocks 130km/h (highest in
India) between Agra and Jhansi stations.
Indian Railways
operates 12 pairs of Shatabdi Expresses and 16 pairs of Jan-Shatabdi
Expresses. Out of the 12 Shatabdi Expresses, 8 originate from New Delhi
(2 to Bhopal, Lucknow, 2 to Amritsar, 2 to Kalka, Ajmer and Dehradun),
two from Chennai (to Bangalore and Mysore) and one each from Kolkata (to
Ranchi) and Mumbai (to Ahmedabad).
