Sabarmati Express

Ahmedabad - Varanasi Sabarmati Superfast Express
Overview
Service type	Superfast
Current operator(s)	Western Railway zone
Route
Termini	Ahmedabad Junction (ADI); Varanasi Junction (BSB)
Stops	15
Distance travelled	1,600 km (990 mi)
Average journey time	36h 45m
Service frequency	5 days a week
Train number(s)	19167/19168
On-board services
Class(es)	Unreserved
Seating arrangements	No
Sleeping arrangements	Yes
Catering facilities	No
Entertainment facilities	No
Technical
Rolling stock	2
Track gauge	1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
Operating speed	44 km/h (27 mph)

The Sabarmati Express is an express train which connects the city of Ahmedabad, India to Varanasi city in the northern state of Bihar through Jhansi. The train may take up to two days to complete the journey. It travels through Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh via Ratlam Junction, Ujjain Junction, Guna Junction, Kanpur Central, Lucknow Charbagh, Ayodhya, Faizabad.

It enters Gujarat from Dahod railway station then Godhra, Vadodara and Ahmedabad.

History

On 27 February 2002, the train was stopped outside Godhra Junction railway station because of the emergency chain being pulled. The train was then attacked and four coaches were burned by a large mob. It has been alleged that the attack was the result of a conspiracy hatched by local Muslims.^[1]^[2]

58 people, including some Hindu pilgrims who were returning from the holy city of Ayodhya, were trapped and killed in the burning train. That incident is perceived as the trigger for the widespread 2002 Gujarat riots that followed in Godhra as well as the rest of Gujarat in which more than a thousand individuals died, thousands more were rendered homeless and property worth hundreds of crores was lost.

Route and halts

The important halts of the train are :

Coach composite

The train consist of 22 coaches :

1 AC II Tier
2 AC III Tier
13 Sleeper Coaches
4 General
2 Second-class Luggage/parcel van

Traction

As the route is yet to be fully electrified, it is hauled by a Ratlam Diesel Loco Shed based WDM 3A from Varanasi up to Ratlam handing over to a Vadodara Electric Loco Shed based WAP-4 locomotive for the remainder of the journey until Ahmedabad.

Direction Reversal

Train Reverses its direction 2 times:

References

^ [1] BBC News
^ The Godhra conspiracy as Justice Nanavati saw it The Times of India, 28 September 2008. Retrieved 2012-02-19. Archived 21 February 2012.

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[1] [1] BBC News

[India_2008-2] The Godhra conspiracy as Justice Nanavati saw it The Times of India, 28 September 2008. Retrieved 2012-02-19. Archived 21 February 2012.

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