the Railways announced the ‘Bharat Gaurav’ scheme, under which theme-based tourist circuit trains, on the lines of the Ramayana Express, can be run either by private or State-owned operators.
Details of the Scheme:
Government has earmarked about 3,033 coaches or about 150 trains.
these will not be regular trains that will run as per a timetable but will be more on the lines of the Ramayana Express being run by the IRCTC.
Service providers, who can be an individual, company, society, trust, joint venture or consortium will be free to decide themes/circuits like Guru Kripa trains for covering important places of Sikh culture.
They will offer an all-inclusive package to tourists including rail travel, hotel accommodation and sightseeing arrangement, visit to historical/heritage sites, tour guides etc. and have full flexibility to decide the package cost.
The service providers will also be able to design/furnish the interior of the coaches based on the theme and put branding or advertising inside and outside of the train.
