Tejas Express, India's first private semi-high speed train, was flagged off by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and the commercial operation began from Saturday, October 5. Passengers can now travel between Delhi and Lucknow with much ease, comfort and world class luxury. The Tejas Express cuts the travel time between the two cities to 6 hours 15 minutes from 6 hours 40 minutes taken by the Swarn Shatabdi, currently the fastest train running on Delhi-Lucknow route.
The Tejas Express Delhi-Lucknow route will have only two halts or stoppages - Kanpur and Ghaziabad and it will run on all days of the week, except Tuesday.
The train operated by the subsidiary of Indian Railways, IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation), has introduced a slew of new features. For most passengers, the new Tejas Express is a premium version of the Shatabdi Express category of air-conditioned chair-car trains.
Here's a look are some at some of the first time initiatives by IRCTC for Tejas Express
1 - Towards a cleaner and greener planer, IRCTC for the first time has taken an eco-friendly measure and is providing passengers onboard the Lucknow-Delhi Tejas Express biodegradable packaged drinking water bottles.
2 - Operated by IRCTC, Tejas Express Delhi-Lucknow route is the first train to be run by a private player.
3 - For the first time, passengers will be paid for any delay on hourly basis. Passengers travelling in IRCTC operated Tejas Express will be compensated with Rs 100 if the delay is for an hour. The compensation amount will increase to Rs 250 in case the train is delayed by more than two hours.
4 - Passengers travelling in the Tejas Express Delhi-Lucknow can avail the benefit of exclusive luggage pick and drop services.
5 - Each passenger travelling in IRCTC operated Tejas Express Delhi-Lucknow route will get a free insurance of Rs 25 lakh.
6 - The insurance cover also includes Rs 1 lakh insurance against theft or robbery during the travel.
7 - Compared to the clerkage charges that Indian Railways deducts at the time of cancellation of ticket, IRCTC will charge its passengers less.
8 - Similar to flights, meals in IRCTC operated Tejas Express will be served by onboard service staff by trolleys.