The two IRCTC-owned private trains of Tejas Express, operating from New Delhi-Lucknow and the Mumbai-Ahmedabad will resume services once again from February 14, after almost 10 months of suspension. In a statement released by the IRCTC, the parent authority stated that it is all set to restart the operation of the private fleet of India's first corporate train, Tejas Express, to cater to the growing passenger demand.
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Resuming after almost 10 months, the Tejas Express has been granted the approval of the Ministry of Railways, along with a new schedule to authorise its journey. The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation has stated that the bookings for all the seats shall be opened for four days in a week, on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, while a 30-days advance reservation period (ARP) for this train shall also be put in place.
The new and rationally-subsidised ticket fares have also been announced and are priced at ₹870 for travel from Lucknow to New Delhi and at ₹780 from Kanpur to New Delhi. About a 40% reduction has been exercised for passenger bookings of the 273 seats, for now. "Thereafter, under dynamic fare pricing methodology, there shall be 10 per cent incremental range up to a maximum of 30 percent of the fare. There shall not any further increase of fare," the statement read.
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The entity further assured that the trains have been prepare to affirm to people's expectation in terms of the level of service, safety and health protocols amid the constant fear of COVID spread. Each Tejas service has the potential to carry 700 passengers, who will be provided with COVID-10 protection kit, containing a bottle of hand sanitiser, one face mask and one pair of gloves. Passengers will also go through thermal screening and hand sanitisation process before entering the coach.
The statement also included the coach pantry areas and laboratories will be disinfected at regular intervals to maximise public safety. Passenger luggage and baggage will also be sanitised by a staffer, deployed specially for this task. "Cleaning and regular disinfection of frequently touched surface inside the coach will be done. The service trays and trolleys will also be disinfected," it said, adding, "The feature of paying compensation to passengers in case of delay will be available to the passengers after the restart of the operations of these two Tejas Trains."
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