Trains introduced by railway ministers

by S Skandan

updates by K K Subramanian and others

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This is an attempt to list out the trains introduced by successive Railway Ministers in India. Much of the information is from the railway budgets of each year. There are a vast number of trains that run in India, and many are cancelled, re-introduced, renamed, rescheduled or re-routed all the time, so this is only the barest attempt at listing some of the better-known trains and their origins.

Year	Railway Minister	Trains introduced
1973	T A Pai	H. Nizamuddin - Mangalore/Ernakulam Jayanti Janata
1974	L N Mishra	Samastipur Jayanti Janata and other JJ trains.
1975-?	Kamalapati Tripathi	Sabarmati Express Ganga-Kaveri Exp. Neelambari Exp. Varanasi Exp. (Delhi-Lucknow Exp. extended) Tamilnadu Exp. Kashi Vishwanath Exp.
1979-?	Prof. Madhu Dandavate	Jhelum Exp. Swaraj Exp. Sarvodaya Exp. Kerala Exp. Karnataka Exp. Andhra Pradesh Exp. EMUs on Pune-Lonavala section
1980-1984	A B A Ghani Khan Chaudhuri	Sealdah - Malda Gaur Exp. Sealdah - Malda Gaur Exp.
1988	Madhav Rao Scindia	Jhansi Shatabdi (later to Bhopal) Howrah-Gwalior Chambal Exp. Bombay-Gwalior Lashkar Exp.
1989	Madhav Rao Scindia	Kanpur Shatabdi (later to Lucknow) Indrayani Exp. Pragati Exp.
1990	George Fernandes	Jammu Tawi - Mangalore/Trichy Navyug Exp Dadar - Muzaffarpur Shramshakti Exp (now cancelled) Hatia - Varanasi Exp (still running?) Surat - Varanasi Tapti Ganga Exp New Delhi and Patna (via Varanasi) Shramjeevi Exp
1991	Jaffer Sharief	Bombay - New Delhi AC Exp (later August Kranti Rajdhani) Bombay - Ahmedabad Karnavati Exp Bombay - Varanasi Pawan Exp H. Nizamuddin - Vishakapatnam Samata Exp Puri - Tirupati Exp Mysore - Tirupati Exp (now Mysore - Tirupati Passenger) Allahabad - Chahpra Bhagirathi Exp (MG) Allahabad - Agra Exp (proposed, never introduced)
1992	Jaffer Sharief	New Delhi - Bangalore Rajdhani Kurla- Bangalore Exp Bidar - Bangalore Link Exp Madras - Banglaore Lalbagh Exp Madras - Vijayawada Pinakani Exp Secunderabad - Vijayawada Satvahana Exp Secunderabad - Bhadrachalam (Passenger?) Varanasi - Gorakhpur Krishak Exp Sealdah - New Jalpaiguri Teesta Torsha Exp Gandhidham - Nagercoil Exp H. Nizamuddin - Indore Inter-City Exp Valsad- Vadodara Exp The following trains proposed by him were introduced later: Bombay Pune Pragati Exp Amritsar Barauni Amrapali Exp H. Nizamuddin - Sambalpur Hirakud Exp Delhi - Sikar Sainik Exp (MG) Vadodara - Gandhidham Exp Secunderabad - Vishakapatnam Vishaka Exp
1993	Jaffer Sharief	H. Nizamuddin - Madras Rajdhani H. Nizamuddin - Agra Inter-City Exp H. Nizamuddin - Mangalore Mangala Exp H. Nizamuddin - Jabalpur/Nagpur Gondwana Exp New Delhi - Puri Purushottam Exp Delhi - Jammu Tawi Super Fast Exp Delhi - Newjalpaiguri Mahananda Link Exp Dhanbad - Tatanagar Subarnarekha Exp Agra Fort - Jaipur Superfast Exp (MG)
1994	Jaffer Sharief	New Delhi - Bhubaneswar Rajdhani Exp New Delhi - Guwahati Rajdhani Exp Bombay - Ahmedabad Shatabdi Exp Bombay - Trivandrum Exp (weekly) New Delhi - Sriganganagar Exp Delhi - Kathgodam Exp Delhi - Sultanpur Sadbhavana Exp Saharanpur - Lucknow Exp Jodhpur - Lucknow Exp Jaipur - Sealdah Exp Katihar - Sealdah Exp Secunderbad - Guntur Nagarjuna Exp The following trains proposed by him were introduced later: Madras - Mysore Shatabdi Bombay - Jaipur Super Fast New Delhi - Amritsar Shatabdi New Delhi - Chandigarh Shatabdi New Delhi - Jaipur Shatabdi Madras - Kanyakumari Exp Nagercoil - Guruvayur Exp
1995	Jaffer Sharief	Howrah - Bokaro Shatabdi Howrah - Raurkela Shatabdi Madras - Coimbatore Shatabdi (cancelled) Bangalore - Hubli Shatabdi (cancelled) Bombay - Madgaon Shatabdi (never introduced) Kurla - Madgaon Exp Miraj - Bangalore Rani Chennamma Exp Bangalore - Quilon Exp (weekly) Ernakulam - Trivandrum Exp (Via Alleppey) Nagercoil - Bombay Exp (weekly) Tirupati - Cuddapah Exp (Passenger?)(cancelled) Delhi - Jaipur Inter-City Exp Jodhpur - Jaipur Exp Bikaner - Jaipur Exp Jodhpur - Howrah Superfast (instead of Jaipur-Sealdah Exp) New Delhi- Muzaffarpur Lichhavi Exp Raxaul - Muzaffarpur Exp Howrah - Gorakhpur Exp (weekly) Howrah - Gauhati Saraighat Exp (weekly) Ahmedabad - Bhavnagar Exp (MG) Kanpur - Farukhabad Exp (MG) Bhagalpur - Muzaffarpur Jansewa Exp Amritsar - Barauni Jansewa Exp Ahmedabad - Puri Exp Surat - Varanasi Jansewa Exp (never introduced) For sometime, Suresh Kalmadi was the railway minister, from Pune. Bombay Pune Shatabdi Ahmedabad - Pune Ahimsa Exp Howrah - Pune Azad Hind Exp Varanasi - Pune Gyan Ganga Exp
1996	Ram Vilas Paswan	New Delhi - Patna Rajdhani Kurla - Patna Exp Delhi - Ramnagar Link Exp Kalka - Simla Shivalik Exp Gorakhpur- Darbhanga Exp (MG) Howrah - Rampurhat Gandevta Exp Howrah - Bikaner Link Exp Jaipur - Chennai Exp (weekly) Bhopal - Rewa Exp Hubli - Bangalore Intercity (instead of the Shatabdi) He also announced the following trains in BG after gauge conversion Ahmedabad - Delhi Mail Ahmedabad - Delhi Ashram Exp Ahmedabad - Bikaner Ranakpur Exp Secunderabad/Guntur - Vasco Exp Guwahati - Dibrugarh Exp
1997	Ram Vilas Paswan	Newdelhi - Ahmedabad Swarnajayanti Rajdhani H. Nizamuddin - Vishakapatnam Swarnajayanti Exp H. Nizamuddin - Bangalore Swarnajayanti Exp H. Nizamuddin - Secunderabad Rajdhani (later cancelled, then reintroduced) Delhi - Ranchi Jarkand Swarnajayanti Exp Surat - Patna Exp Gorakhpur - Dehradun Exp (bi-weekly) Koraput- Bhubaneswar Link Exp Madras - Tirupati Inter City Tata- Katihar link Exp Vasco - Bangalore Exp Coimbatore - Bangalore Intercity Exp H. Nizamuddin - Ernakulam Swarnajayanti Exp (introduced for political reasons, to placate Kerala MPs)
1998	Nitish Kumar	Kurla - Howrah Super Deluxe Kurla - Nagpur Super Deluxe Kurla - Varanasi Kamyani Exp Kurla - Mangalore Matsyagandha Exp H. Nizamuddin - Bhopal Superfast Patna - Bhagalpur Intercity Secunderbad - Guntur Palnad Exp Madurai - Coimbatore Exp (MG) (cancelled) New Delhi - Muzaffarpur Swatantra senani Exp Sealdah - NewBongaigaon Uttar Bangla Exp Howrah - Trichy Exp (triweekly) Vishakaptanam - Bangalore Prashanti Exp Later on all the express trains on the Chennai - Trichy - Madurai route were restored after BG conversion. All the trains on the Ahmedabad - Delhi route announced earlier were also introduced, except that Ranakpur Exp was started from Bandra to Bikaner, Suryanagari Exp was restored from Ahmedabad to Jodhpur and Aravalli Exp was started from Bombay to Jaipur (via Ajmer). In SCR, Venkatadari Exp was introduced between Secunderabad - Tirupati (via Kurnool), Haripriya Exp was introduced between Kolhapur and Tirupati. However a Secunderabd - Hubli Exp announced earlier was never introduced.
1999	Nitish kumar	Amritsar - Darbhanga Jansewa Exp (weekly) Delhi - Gandhidham Exp. (the train was not introduced, but Ala Hazrat Exp running between Ajmer and Bareilly was extended to Gandhidham) Kurla-Patna superfast Mumbai - Madgaon Mandovi Exp Jaipur- Bangalore Exp (via Secunderabad) Raichur - Gulbarga Passenger Secunderabd - Machilipatnam Exp Chennai - Tirupati Shatabdi (never introduced) Chennai - Guwahati Exp (biweekly) Pune - Ernakulam Exp (via Hubli) (introduced later, now runs via Madgoan) Shalimar- Haldia Azad Exp Kamakhya - NewBongaigaon Pass Patna - Mughalsarai Pass (via Gaya) H. Nizamuddin - Coimbatore Kongu Exp (weekly)
2000	Mamta Banerji	Sealdah - New Delhi Rajdhani Sealdah - Amritsar Akaltakht Exp Sealdah - New Jalpaiguri Kanchkanya Exp Shalimar - Bankura Exp Howrah - Purulia Rupashi Bangla Exp Ajmer - Bangalore Exp (weekly) Jodhpur - Bangalore Exp (weekly) Shimoga - Bangalore Exp Puttaparthi - Bangalore Satya Sai Exp Tirupati - Nagercoil Exp Manmad - Kakinada Exp Ahmedabad - Nagpur Exp (weekly) Okha - Dehradun Uttaranchal Exp (weekly) Bandra - Gandhidham Exp (combining 9055 Sayajinagari Exp and 9101 Vadodara Gandhidham Exp) Hatia - Bhagalpur Vananchal Exp Manduadih - Baidynathdham Exp Lucknow - Chhapra Exp Lucknow - Bhopal Exp((weekly) Bikaner - Suratgarh Exp Kurla - Madurai Exp (weekly) Some Calcutta area specials introduced by her: Howrah - Dehradun Upasana Exp (weekly) Sealdah - Ajmer Exp (weekly) Howrah - Okha Exp (weekly)
2001	Mamta Banerji	New Delhi - Bilaspur Rajdhani Newdelhi - Hatia Rajdhani H. Nizamuddin - Secunderabad Rajdhani New Delhi - Gorakhpur Gorakhdham Exp Hatia - Dhanbad Inter-City Asansol - Amritsar Superfast Asansol - Haldia Exp Asansol - New Jalpaiguri Exp Howrah - New Jalpaiguri Exp Howrah - Yeshwantpur Exp (weekly) Howrah - Nagercoil Gurudev Exp Howrah - Rampurhat Exp Kurla - Bhubaneswar Exp (weekly) Berhampur - Bhubaneswar Exp (now extended to Srikakulam) Chennai - Jodhpur Exp (weekly) Jodhpur - Haridwar link Exp Valsad - Patna Exp(weekly) Gandhinagar - Indore Exp Pune - Solapur Exp Pune - Ernakulam Exp (via Madgaon) Vasco - Yeshwantpur Exp (biweekly) Jaipur - Ernakulam Marusagar Exp Palghat - Trivandrum amritha Exp
2002	Nitish Kumar	Jammu Tawi - Haridwar Exp New Delhi - Howrah Exp (biweekly) H. Nizamuddin - Kanyakumari Exp (weekly via Villipuram) Delhi - Pathankot Exp (triweekly) Guwahati - Jodhpur/Bikaner Exp (weekly) Jaipur - Durg Exp (weekly) Jaipur - Bandra Exp (triweekly) Indore - Patna Exp (weekly via Lucknow and Varanasi) Bhopal - Howrah Exp (weekly) Kurla - Habibganj Exp (weekly) Durg - Banglaore Exp (weekly via Chanda Fort, Secunderbad) Mhow - Chittaurgarh Exp (MG) Ahmedabad - Varanasi Exp (via Allahabad) Ahmedbad - Rajkot Exp Gandhidham - Bangalore Exp (weekly) Pune - Nanded Exp (triweekly) Cannanore - Banglaore Exp (weekly) Calicut - Erankulam Exp (after Janshatabdi is introduced between Ernakulam and Trivandrum) Chennai - Trivandrum Exp (via Nagercoil) Chennai - Vishakapatnam Exp (weekly) Kurla - Hatia Exp (weekly via Gaya) Hatia - Gervaroad Exp Rajgir - Sarnath Buddhaparikrama Exp (triweekly) Howrah - Gorakhpur Exp (weekly via Narkatiaganj) Bhubneswar - Palasa Intercity There are also the Jan Shatabdis proposed Madgaon - Kurla Bangalore - Hubli Ernakulam - Trivandrum Chennai - Vijayawada Habibganj - Jabalpur Ahmedabad - Bhuj Lucknow - Varanasi Patna - Katihar Tata - Ranchi Raigarh - Durg Guwahati - Dimapur Howrah - Malda town Howrah - Bhubaneshwar New Delhi - Chandigarh New Delhi - Dehradun H. Nizamuddin - Kota