The 12331 / 12332 Himgiri Superfast Express is a Superfast train of the Indian Railways connecting in

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

and in

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. It is currently being operated with 12331/12332 train numbers on three days in week. It covers a total distance of that runs through the major north states of India. The old

ICF coach The Integral Coach Factory (ICF) coach was a conventional passenger coach used on the majority of main-line trains in India. The design of the coach was developed by Integral Coach Factory, Perambur, Chennai, India in collaboration with the Sw ...

of the trains were replaced with the new

LHB coach Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coach is a passenger coach of Indian Railways that is developed by Linke-Hofmann-Busch of Germany (renamed Alstom LHB GmbH in 1998 after the takeover by Alstom and now known as Alstom Transport Deutschland) and mostly ...

during Mid 14 August 2018.

History

In 1975 in order to bring equality amongst all classes and provide good train experience to all strata of society, the Himgiri Express was launched. The Himgiri Express made its inaugural run on 1 January 1979. From 1979 to 2004, Himgiri Express followed a fast time table. Departing from at 23.45 hrs & arriving at 07.45 hrs on 3rd day & on return departing Jammu Tawi at 22.45 hrs, arriving Howrah at 06.45 hrs on 3rd morning. In 1st 25 years of service this train used to stop only at , , , , , , , , , , , & . However, 19 more stoppages were added between 2004 and 2020 period. This hampered operation & punctuality failed miserably. It was also when this express was launched that the Indian Railways abolished the third class in trains.

Services

Currently the train takes 36 hrs 45 mins to cover the journey. Departing at 23.55 hrs from Howrah Junction & arriving Jammu Tawi at 12.40 hrs on 3rd day as 12331 Himgiri Express. On return, departing 22.45 hrs from Jammu Tawi & arriving Howrah Junction at 11.30 hrs on 3rd day as 12332 Himgiri Express. Train had been slowed by 4 hrs 45 mins from 2004 onwards after 19 more halts were added. As the average speed of the train is at par with speed of , as per Indian Railways rules, its fare includes a Superfast surcharge.

Route & halts

The important halts of the train are; * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Traction

Both trains are hauled by a

Howrah Howrah (, , alternatively spelled as Haora) is a city in the Indian state of West Bengal. Howrah is located on the western bank of the Hooghly River opposite its twin city of Kolkata. Administratively it lies within Howrah district, and is th ...

-based

WAP-5 The Indian locomotive class WAP-5 is the name of a class of "High Speed" electric locomotives produced and used by Indian Railways. The first 10 locomotives were imported from ABB in Switzerland in 1995. They are supposed to be a variant of th ...

WAP-7 The Indian locomotive class WAP-7 is a class of 25 Volt, kV Alternating current, AC Electric locomotive, electric locomotives that was developed in 1999 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for 5 ft 6 ...

(HOG)-equipped locomotive from end to end

Coach composition

The train consists of 22 coaches: * 1 composite (first class AC+2tier AC) * 1 AC 2 Tier * 4 AC three tier * 1 buffet car *10 sleeper coach *3 unreserved coach *2 EOG

References