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Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Railway Minister Ashvini Vaishnaw flagged off the extension of the Banaras-Sambalpur Express up to Visakhapatnam from Sambalpur railway station on Monday.
The extended biweekly train, now named (18311) Visakhapatnam-Banaras Express, will depart from Visakhapatnam every Wednesday and Sunday at 4:10 am. The return journey, (18312) Banaras-Visakhapatnam Express, will leave Banaras every Thursday and Monday at 3 pm. However, the regular service in the extended portion of this train will commence on November 22 from Visakhapatnam and from Banaras it will commence operations on November 23. On the occasion, Dharmendra Pradhan said that this train will ensure seamless rail connectivity. In this regard, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the new Rajdhani-level coaches have been installed on this train. "Extension services of Banaras-Sambalpur Express up to Visakhapatnam from Sambalpur railway station have been flagged off today. Along with it, new Rajdhani-level coaches have been installed in it. This will provide good facilities to the people," Vaishnaw said. BJP Sambalpur MP Nitesh Gangadev, Bargarh MP Suresh Pujari, Kalahandi MP Basant Panda and Balangir MP Sangeeta Kumari Singh Deo graced the occasion from different railway stations across Odisha. "Without disturbing the scheduled timings and stoppages for this train between Sambalpur and Banaras, this train has been extended to Visakhapatnam," an official statement said. (ANI)
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