Chennai weekly specials start Apr 20
Weekly summer special trains from Dr. MGR Chennai Central and Tambaram to Santragachi and to Mumbai’s CSMT begin April 20, with advance bookings open on IRCTC. ( )
Southern Railway will start a fresh set of summer special trains from Chennai and Tambaram from April 20, adding weekly trips to Santragachi and Mumbai as holiday demand rises. (newindianexpress.com) The Dr. M.G.R. Chennai Central–Santragachi special is scheduled to leave Chennai at 11:45 p.m. on April 20 and April 27, both Mondays, and reach Santragachi at 7:45 a.m. on the third day. The return Santragachi–Chennai Beach service is set for April 22 and April 29, both Wednesdays, leaving at 10:45 a.m. and arriving at 7:30 p.m. the next day. (newindianexpress.com) A separate Mumbai route will run weekly for a longer stretch. The Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus–Dr. M.G.R. Chennai Central special leaves Mumbai at 12:20 p.m. on Sundays from April 19 to June 7, and the return leaves Chennai at 4 a.m. on Mondays from April 20 to June 8, reaching Mumbai at 4:15 a.m. the next day. (newindianexpress.com) Tambaram is also getting a Santragachi link. The Tambaram–Santragachi special will depart at 10:15 a.m. on April 21 and April 28, both Tuesdays, and reach Santragachi at 6:30 p.m. the next day. (newindianexpress.com) The timing lines up with Indian Railways’ annual summer pattern, when zones add temporary trains to handle school vacations and seasonal migration traffic. Southern Railway’s active press release list for April shows multiple summer-special announcements issued in the first half of the month. (sr.indianrailways.gov.in) Mumbai’s Central Railway is making similar additions on other corridors at the same time, including extra summer services from Mumbai to Banaras, Bengaluru and Chennai between April and July. That wider rollout shows the extra Chennai services are part of a broader pre-summer capacity push across zones, not a one-off schedule change. (freepressjournal.in) Advance reservation for the Chennai, Tambaram and Mumbai specials is already open. On the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation booking system, passengers can search routes, check class-wise fares and availability, and book from the listed train options. (newindianexpress.com, contents.irctc.co.in) For travelers trying to move before the late-April rush, the key date is now fixed: the first departures begin on Sunday, April 19, from Mumbai and on Monday, April 20, from Chennai. (newindianexpress.com)
