In a first, seat number 64 of coach B5 in the Kashi Mahakal Express, that connects three Jyotirlingas in two states, has been turned into a mini-temple devoted to Lord Shiva. The Kashi Mahakal Express was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday from Varanasi.
Railway officials told news agency ANI that efforts will be made to keep the seat number 64 of coach B5 in Kashi Mahakal Express (Varanasi-Indore), reserved for Lord Shiva.
"It's for the first time that a seat has been reserved and left vacant for the deity Lord Shiva. Even a temple has been drawn on the seat to make people aware that the seat is reserved for the Lord Mahakal in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain," Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar told PTI. He said a decision whether to make this a permanent fixture of the train is yet to be taken.
The Kashi Mahakal Express connects Omkareshwar (near Indore), Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain) and Kashi Vishwanath (Varanasi) Jyotirlingas. The train was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 16 from the Varanasi junction and will start plying regularly from February 20.
Kashi-Mahakal Express connects three Jyotirlingas -- Omkareshwar near Indore, Mahakaleshwar in Ujjain and Kashi Vishwanath in Varanasi. The national transporter launched its third IRCTC-operated service, the PSU's third corporate train, from Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi to Indore in Madhya Pradesh and has named it Kashi Mahakal Express.
Light devotional music, two dedicated private guards in every coach and only vegetarian meals will be some of the new features of the fully 3-AC service that will run thrice a week between Varanasi and Indore. The train will cover 1,131 km between Varanasi and Indore via Lucknow and a distance of 1,102 km between Varanasi and Indore via Prayagraj (Allahabad) in approximately 19 hours.
(Inputs from Agencies)
