In a recent announcement, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has declared its ambitious goal of aiding the pilgrimage of 1.17 lakh devotees from Punjab to the renowned Ram Mandir in Ayodhya by the end of March. As part of this initiative, the Indian Railways will operate four special trains from Punjab and one from Chandigarh between February 7 and February 23.
The inaugural train is scheduled to depart from Amritsar on February 7, making stops at Beas, Jalandhar City, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, and Ambala stations before reaching Ayodhya. It is set to return to Punjab on February 10. Following this, the second train from Pathankot is slated for departure to Ayodhya on February 9, returning on February 12.
Additionally, a special train originating from Nangal Dam will commence its journey on February 12, returning on February 14. The Chandigarh-originating train is planned for flag-off on February 19, with return scheduled on February 22.
The second train from Pathankot will start its journey on February 23 and return on February 26. Notably, hoardings have surfaced in various cities across Punjab, advertising “free rail yatra to Ayodhya” for devotees.
BJP leaders clarified that they, along with various religious institutions, are sponsoring the travel expenses of these pilgrims. Furthermore, the state BJP leaders assured that food and lodging expenses in Ayodhya would be taken care of by them in collaboration with some non-governmental organizations. Addressing the demand for increased accessibility, Sarup Chand Singla, the BJP Bathinda district president, revealed, “We have demanded one train for Bathinda Lok Sabha constituency, which encompasses nine Vidhan Sabha constituencies. Currently, we are accommodating 9,000 people per Lok Sabha constituency, but the demand is five times more than our current
capacity.