Indian Railways starts special pilgrimage train for senior citizens

Indian Railways has introduced a special pilgrimage train catering to the needs of senior citizens under the Baristha Nagarika Tirtha Yatra Yojana. This special train will let senior citizens travel to Shirdi, Nasik and Trimbakeshwar and it will be a seven-day tour.

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Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik did the flagging off ceremony of the train from Sambalpur station. Nearly a thousand senior citizens from 10 western districts boarded this train.

The plan is a part of an MoU signed between the Odisha Government and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). Under this pilgrimage program, people falling in the age group between 60 and 75 years are only eligible to avail the benefits.
Moreover, senior citizens belonging to below poverty line (BPL) category are being provided 100 percent concessions under the same scheme, informed District Tourist Officer, Rabindra Dalei. He also said that with every 50 senior citizens, an escort officer was appointed to help them during the journey.


However, this is not the first time that a pilgrimage train was flagged off from Sambalpur station. Last time it happened in 2016, wherein as many as thousand senior citizens were taken to places of religious importance like Haridwar and Rishikesh. This is indeed a great thoughtful initiative by the IRCTC and the state government. Though this was the second religious program started by the Indian Railways for the benefit of senior citizens, people hope to see more such initiatives happening in the future too.