Railways to roll out Vande Bharat Sabari Special Trains between Chennai and Kottayam; Check details

Sabarimala season: To ease the huge rush at Sabarimala Ayyappa temple, the Indian Railways have announced Vande Bharat Sabari Special trains that will be operated for four days between Chennai Central and Kottayam stations.

Chennai: Amid huge footfall of devotees at Sabarimala Ayyappa temple, the Indian Railways has announced to roll out a special train between Chennai and Kottayam for four days. The Vande Bharat Sabari Special Trains will be operated between Chennai Central- Kottayam via Salem, Erode, and Podanur to cater to the extra rush of traffic in view of Sabarimala pilgrimage season. 

Central Vande Bharat Sabari Bi-Weekly Specials:

Train No. 06151 Dr MGR Chennai Central - Kottayam Vande Bharat Sabari Bi- Weekly Special will leave Dr MGR Chennai Central at 04.30 hrs on 15th, 17th, 22nd, 24th December 2023 (Fridays & Sundays) and reach Kottayam at 16.15 hrs, the same day (4 Services). 

In return direction, Train No. 06152 Kottayam Dr MGR Chennai Central Vande Bharat Sabari Bi-Weekly Special will leave Kottayam at 04.40 hrs on 16th, 18th, 23rd, 25th December 2023 (Saturdays & Mondays) and reach Dr MGR Chennai Central at 17.15 hrs, the same day (4 Services).

The Vande Bharat Sabari Special train will have stops at Chennai Central, Katpadi, Salem, Erode, Podanur, Palakkad, Thrissur, Ernakulam Town, and Kottayam.

Meanwhile, the High Court said that the current situation and uncontrolled crowding at Sabarimala were not expected. The High Court Devaswom Bench assessed that such situations could have been avoided and reiterated the need for special attention in the case of women and children. The court directed that entry to Sabarimala should be arranged accordingly. Those who come without a virtual queue and spot booking should not be allowed to attend. Spot booking is mostly done by Malayalis.

The number of spot bookings should be capped, said the court. A press release should be issued regarding the spot booking limit. The court also inquired about the situation in Erumeli where pilgrims are waiting for hours following the rush. The court also suggested that if virtual queue booking is 80000 then spot booking should be 5000 or 10000.