Passengers from west take east coast route to skirt train delays & exorbitant flight costs

PUNE: Travellers from the city and Mumbai to eastern India cities, such as Kolkata, are compelled to opt for detour on both ways to reach their destinations on time.
There are two reasons. First inordinate delay of trains connecting India's east with west. Second, exorbitant airfares because of one airline currently operating Pune-Kolkata planes.

At present, the most popular train route of Kolkata-bound passengers from Pune and Mumbai is via Secunderabad (near Hyderabad) in Telangana because of better timing and cheaper fares, though the distance is about 126km more.Many people from Pune take Shatabdi Express (12025) to the city of Charminar. After a layover of about two hours, they board Secunderabad-Howrah Faluknama Express (12703/12704).
Secunderabad Shatabdi Express (12025) leaves Pune at 6am and reaches Secunderabad at 1.45pm. Falukanama (12704) departs from Hyderabad at 3.55pm and reaches Howrah at 5.40pm the next day.
Many opt for the same route on their way back. On its return leg, Faluknama (12703) departs from Howrah at 8.35am and reaches Secunderabad at 10.15am the following day. Shatabdi (12026) leaves Secunderabad at 2.45pm and reaches Pune at 11.10pm. Secunderabad Shatabdi does not operate on Tuesdays on either way.
Duronto Express (1221/1222) takes about 30 hours to cover the Pune-Kolkata distance and Azad Hind about 33-and-a-half hours. Both these trains have been running late for over nine months - Duronto by four hours and Azad Hind by six hours on an average. Against this backdrop, many give thumbs up to the east coast route.
The total time spent on trains to reach Kolkata via Hyderabad is around 35 hours. "Even if one waits for two hours for the connecting train in Secunderabad, the Pune-Kolkata distance is covered within 37 hours," said IT professional Kaushal Kishore.
Besides, many passengers like the timings of Faluknama Express. "Reaching Kolkata by evening is guaranteed on trains (East Coast Express too) via Hyderabad. But if Duronto runs late by four hours, it is almost midnight by the time one reaches Kolkata. Also, it leaves Howrah very early."
Duronto is scheduled to leave Howrah at 5.45am on Thursdays and Saturdays and reach Pune at 9.40am on Fridays and Sundays. It reached Pune at 1.23pm on Friday - three hours and 43 minutes behind the schedule. The train leaves Pune at 3.15pm on Mondays and Saturdays and reaches Howrah at 8.15pm on Tuesdays and Sundays.
Howrah-bound Azad Hind Express on Saturday reached its destination five hours and 15 minutes late. The Pune-bound train reached the city about four-and-a-half hours late.
On the awkward timings of Duronto, Railway Board's senior official Yogesh Avasthi said, "We have received some suggestions from passengers. We will look into it." Most of the Mumbai-Howrah trains are also running late. The average delay is four-five hours.
Under such circumstances, several passengers from Pune and Mumbai stressed that the Secunderabad route was more convenient and pocket-friendly than the Nagpur route despite the distance between Pune and Kolkata via east coast being more.
"The distance from Pune to Kolkata in direct trains like Duronto Express or Azad Hind Express is 2014.4km. Passengers going to the West Bengal capital via Secunderabad are covering a total distance of 2,140.7km, about 126km more than trains via Nagpur," said Kaushik Chatterjee, a senior official of the commercial department of South Eastern railway.
Last but not the least, money matters. "The average AC First Class fare of Duronto Express from Pune to Kolkata is Rs6,745. Dynamic pricing is followed for this train's tickets. One spends a total of Rs6,550 to travel in the Executive Class of Shatabdi Express and AC First Class of Faluknama Express to reach Kolkata," said Vimannagar's Amit Sahay, a senior manager of a popular AC brand, who travels frequently to the firm's plant in Kharagpur, about 120km away from Kolkata.