Hirakud Express

Not to be confused with Hirakhand Express.

Hirakud Superfast Express
Overview
Service typeExpress train
LocaleAndhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab
First service1 July 1992 (1992-07-01)
Current operator(s)South Coast Railway
Route
TerminiVisakhapatnam (VSKP) 00.10(D)/21.10(A)
Amritsar Junction (ASR) 21.25(A)/23.55(D)
Stops45
Distance travelled2,584.8 km (1,606 mi)
Average journey time45 hours 15 minutes
Service frequencyTri-weekly
Train number(s)20807 / 20808
On-board services
Class(es)AC 2 tier, AC 3 tier, Sleeper Class, General Unreserved
Seating arrangementsYes
Sleeping arrangementsYes
Catering facilitiesAvailable
Observation facilitiesLarge windows
Baggage facilitiesUnder the seats
Technical
Rolling stockLHB coach
Track gauge1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
Operating speed57.15 km/h (35.51 mph) average with halts.
Route map

The 20807 / 20808 Hirakud Superfast Express is a tri-weekly express train which runs between Amritsar and Visakhapatnam. It passes through the cities of Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Ambala, Kurukshetra, Panipat, Delhi, Mathura, Agra, Gwalior, Jhansi, Sagar, Damoh, Katni, Umaria, Shahdol, Anuppur, Bilaspur, Raigarh, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Angul, Talcher, Dhenkanal, Naraj Marthapur railway station, Bhubaneswar, Khurda Road, Brahmapur, Palasa, Srikakulam Road & Vizianagaram. Hira means diamond and Kud means island in Sambalpuri language spoken in Western Odisha. Sambalpur was famous as an ancient diamond mine and reference about it can be found in the works of Claudius Ptolemy, Edward Gibbon, Jean-Baptiste Tavernier. Hirakud Express is named after the famous Hirakud Dam in Sambalpur, Odisha which is one of the longest dams of India.

History

It was initially introduced between Sambalpur and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station (Delhi) in 1992 as 4087/4088 Hirakud Express with reversals at Katni & Jharsuguda. For the 1st 10 yrs Hirakud Express was covering 1,394.2 km (866 mi) kms in 25 hrs 30 mins running at 54.27 km/h (33.72 mph) speed. Later in 2002 it was extended to Bhubaneswar with number change to 8407/8408 with added reversal at Talcher. Timings were same in Sambalpur - Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station & vice versa direction. In 2012, Hirakud Express was extended to Visakhapatnam from Bhubaneswar and Amritsar from Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station & number was changed to 18507/18508. The 18507/18508 Hirakud Express was taking a whooping 47 hours to cover 2,584.8 km (1,606 mi) running at 55 km/h (34 mph) speed. Train used reversal at 3 stops Talcher, Sambalpur & Jharsuguda as it was avoiding reversal at Katni by bypassing via Katni Murwara Junction. From 2017 onwards, with the inauguration of Jharsuguda Road, bypass station for Jharsuguda, the train uses reversal at Talcher & Sambalpur only.

Coach composition

The coach composition of the 20807/20808 Hirakud Express is:

  • 1 AC 2 Tier
  • 4 AC 3 Tier
  • 6 Sleeper Class
  • 4 Second Class(Unreserved)
  • 1 Pantry Car
  • 1 EOG
  • 1 SRL

From Visakhapatnam to Amritsar

Loco 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
EOG GEN S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 PC S6 A1 B1 B2 B3 B4 GEN GEN GEN SLR

From Amritsar to Visakhapatnam

Loco 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
SLR GEN GEN GEN B4 B3 B2 B1 A1 S6 PC S5 S4 S3 S2 S1 GEN EOG

Timetable

  • 20807- Starts from Visakhapatnam every Saturday, Tuesday and Friday at 00.10 am & reaches Amritsar Junction on 3rd day at 21.25 pm.
  • 20808- Starts from Amritsar Jn every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at 23.55 pm & and reaches Visakhapatnam on 3rd day at 21.10 pm.

Route & halts

Rake sharing

The train shares its rake with 20811/20812 Visakhapatnam–Hazur Sahib Nanded Superfast Express.

Traction

It is hauled by a Visakhapatnam Loco Shed based WAP-7 electric locomotive on its entire journey.

See also

References

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