Eastern corridor specials start
Railways rolled out summer special services on the Kolkata–Bhubaneswar and Patna–Asansol corridors starting April 13 to handle holiday demand across Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha. (patnapress.com)
Indian Railways began running summer special trains on Monday, April 13, on the Patna–Asansol corridor, with a Kolkata–Bhubaneswar special set to start its first trip on Tuesday, April 14. (patnapress.com) The Patna–Asansol MEMU Special, train numbers 03202 and 03201, will run daily from April 13 through April 30. It leaves Patna Junction at 4:35 a.m., reaches Asansol at 12:45 p.m., then returns at 1:45 p.m. and arrives back in Patna at 10:10 p.m. (patnapress.com; news18.com) On the coastal side, train 08401 will run from Bhubaneswar to Kolkata every Tuesday from April 14 to April 28, leaving at 12:50 a.m. and arriving at 9:15 a.m. The return train, 08402, departs Kolkata at 5:10 p.m. and reaches Bhubaneswar at 12:45 a.m. (patnapress.com) The extra services come as schools close for summer and eastern India’s rail network absorbs a seasonal jump in family travel, migrant trips and daily commuting. Indian Railways has also announced 1,484 summer special services nationwide for the 2026 holiday period. (patnapress.com; hellorail.in) The eastern additions are not limited to the two headline corridors. Railways also scheduled the 03204 and 03203 Kiul–Malda Town MEMU pair to run daily from April 13 to April 30, and the 08871 and 08872 Itwari–Malda Town specials for trips on April 19, 20, 21, 26 and 27. (patnapress.com; jagran.com) The Kiul–Malda service adds stops at New Farakka, Barharwa, Sahibganj, Kahalgaon, Bhagalpur, Sultanganj, Jamalpur and Abhaypur. The Patna–Asansol MEMU is scheduled to stop at Rajendra Nagar, Patna Sahib, Fatuha, Bakhtiyarpur, Barh, Mokama, Barhiya, Lakhisarai, Kiul, Jamui, Jhajha, Jasidih, Madhupur and Chittaranjan. (patnapress.com; jagran.com) Railway officials told local outlets the goal is to reduce crowding on regular trains during the peak holiday stretch. Local coverage in Bihar said the added MEMU services are expected to help daily passengers, workers and migrants who often face long waiting lists in April. (patnapress.com; jagran.com) For passengers on these eastern routes, the change is immediate: more departures this week, more intermediate stops on commuter-heavy lines, and a short summer window that currently runs through April 30 for the Bihar-linked MEMU services. (patnapress.com; news18.com)
