Central Railway releases the timetable for Dadar-Sawantwadi special train

Due to the coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent lockdown, no trains ran regularly in Maharashtra, for the past 7 months. This resulted in a loss for many travellers from Konkan, as they had to pay for vehicles to travel by road, and this cost a lot more than the train travel.

However, the state has given permission for some activities to resume in Maharashtra, and keeping the inconvenience in mind, the Central Railway department, on September 23, 2020, decided to resume the train services on the Konkan railway line.

An update was announced on Wednesday by the officials which stated that the Dadar-Sawantwadi special train will run regularly from September 26, 2020, and guidelines have been issued by the same. This decision offers a big relief for the people travelling to and from Konkan, who have reported traffic jams, for the last many months. 

The state has been observing lockdown since March 2020, and many national train services along with the Mumbai local trains were shut as per the guidelines issued by the central government. However, special trains were released by the Indian Railways on major routes across the country after the unlock guidelines were issued, and eventually the number of these trains are being increased. 

Some of these selected trains are currently plying the southern states via the Konkan Railway. However, no special train was issued for the passengers in Konkan. But, this announcement of Dadar-Sawantwadi special train will help  people plan their commute during the festive seasons.

As per the information issued by the Central Railway, the Dadar-Sawantwadi special train will run regularly from September 26 to October 31, as per the monsoon schedule. 

Dadar-Sawantwadi special train (01003) will depart from Dadar daily at 00.05 hours and will reach Sawantwadi Road at 12.20 noon on the same day. However, the return 01004 train will begin from Sawantwadi Road every day at 5.30 pm and reach Dadar at 06.45 am the next day.

Following this, the schedule will be changed from November 1, according to the non-monsoon schedule. However, strict rules have been mentioned where passengers will have to follow all the norms related to COVID19, and one can only board the train, if they have sought a confirmation.