The 12615 / 12616 Grand Trunk Express (commonly called G.T. or G.T Express) is a Daily Superfast Express train on

Indian Railways Indian Railways is a state-owned enterprise that is organised as a departmental undertaking of the Ministry of Railways (India), Ministry of Railways of the Government of India and operates India's national railway system. , it manages the fou ...

, running between and Madras Egmore. From February 2024, the train is starting from Madras Egmore. It is a historic train and is one of the oldest trains starting services in 1929. It originally ran between

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

in the

North West Frontier Province The North-West Frontier Province (NWFP; ) was a province of British India from 1901 to 1947, of the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955, and of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan from 1970 to 2010. It was established on 9 November 1901 from ...

(present-day capital of the

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ; , ; abbr. KP or KPK), formerly known as the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Northern Pakistan, northwestern region of the country, Khyber ...

province,

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

) and

Mangalore Central Mangalore Central railway station (officially Mangaluru Central railway station)(station code: MAQ) is an NSG–2 category Indian railway station in Palakkad railway division of Southern Railway zone. It is the main railway terminus in the ci ...

in the

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...

(present-day city in

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

, India). From September 2021, it runs with modern new LHB coach with revised coach position.

History

For most of the 19th century, the main railway route from

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

and

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

was through

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

. The Madras–Bombay mail train carried through carriages between Madras and

Manmad Manmad ( ənmaːɖ is a town in Nashik district in Maharashtra, India. It is the third largest city in Nashik district, with a population of approximately 80,000. Geographically, the town lies within Nandgaon Tehsil in Nashik District. Though ...

which were detached at

Daund Daund is a city, municipal council, and headquarters of the Daund tehsil in the Pune district in the state of Maharashtra, India. The city of Daund is located on the Bhima River. In ancient times, a sage named Dhaumya Rishi stayed here; henc ...

. Passengers would then transfer to the

Great Indian Peninsular Railway The Great Indian Peninsula Railway (reporting mark GIPR) was a predecessor of the Central Railway (and by extension, the current state-owned Indian Railways), whose headquarters was at the Boree Bunder in Mumbai (later, the Victoria Terminu ...

's Calcutta Mail at Manmad to proceed to the northern and the eastern parts of the country. The East Coast line between Madras and Calcutta opened in 1900, providing a shorter route for the passengers bound to Calcutta, but the passengers bound to Delhi,

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

and other major cities in the north, continued to rely on the Madras–Manmad mail service. A record in through-train running was set in 1921 by a military train conveying families of a regiment from Peshawar to

Cannanore Kannur (), formerly known in English as Cannanore, is a city and municipal corporation in the state of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kannur district and situated north of the major port city and commercial hub ...

(now Kannur in

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

). The journey represented a continuous run of over 2500 miles over the

North Western Railway (British India) The North Western State Railway (NWSR) was formed in January 1886 from the merger of the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi Railway, the Indus Valley State Railway, the Punjab Northern State Railway, the eastern section of the Sind–Sagar Railway and the ...

Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway The Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway was a railway company that operated in southern India. It was founded on 1 January 1908 by merging the Madras Railway and the Southern Mahratta Railway. Initially, its headquarters was at Royapuram in ...

and the

South Indian Railway The South Indian Railway Company operated a number of gauge lines in South India from 1874 to 1951. History The Great Southern of India Railway Company was established with its headquarters in England in 1853. The Carnatic Railway Company wa ...

. Following this record journey, interest in a shorter through route between Madras and Delhi was rekindled and the

Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway Nizam's Guaranteed State Railway (NGSR) was a railway company operating in India from 1883 to 1950. The company began with a line built privately by the HEH, the Nizam, which was owned and operated by the company under a guarantee from the Hy ...

hastened the construction of the missing rail link between

Kazipet Kazipet is the major educational and transport hub in Hanumakonda district in the Indian state of Telangana. It is about 12 KM away from Warangal It is one of the tri-city along with Warangal and Hanmakonda. Kazipet railway station is one of t ...

and . The link was opened throughout on 15 November 1928 with the commissioning of the Asifabad Road – section. This link reduced the distance between Madras and Delhi by over 200 miles. From 1 April 1929 the 'Grand Trunk' express commenced operating as two through carriages running between

in the

and

Mangalore Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the st ...

in the

. The two coaches, consisting of a composite First and Second class coach and a composite Third class and Luggage coach, made their way to

attached to the

's Mangalore–Madras mail train. Between Madras and

Itarsi Itarsi is a city and municipality in Narmadapuram in Madhya Pradesh, India. Itarsi is a key hub for agricultural goods and Itarsi Junction railway station is the biggest railway junction in Madhya Pradesh. Rail services from all 4 major metrop ...

sectional coaches to Itarsi, Bezwada (now

Vijayawada Vijayawada ( ), formerly known by its colonial name Bezawada, is the second largest city and a major commercial hub in the Andhra Pradesh state of India. The city forms an integral part of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region and is situated on th ...

) and

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

were operated. At Itarsi, the two through coaches from Mangalore were attached to the Great Indian Peninsular Railway's Bombay–Delhi service. In the final leg of the journey between Delhi and Peshawar, the two through carriages were attached to the

Frontier Mail The 12903 / 12904 Golden Temple SF Mail is a Daily Superfast Mail train operated by the Indian Railways that runs daily between (MMCT) in Maharashtra and (ASR) in Punjab. It is the fastest train from Mumbai to Amritsar on daily basis. It is n ...

and reached Peshawar traveling through

Bathinda Bathinda is a city and municipal corporation in Punjab, India. The city is the administrative headquarters of Bathinda district. It is located in northwestern India in the Malwa Region, west of the capital city of Chandigarh and is the fifth ...

Ferozepore Firozpur, (pronunciation: Help:IPA/Punjabi, ɪroːzpʊr also known as Ferozepur, is a city on the banks of the Sutlej River in the Firozpur District of Punjab, India. After the Partition of India in 1947, it became a border town on the In ...

and

. Thus the train covered a distance of 2497 miles in a little over 96 hours. This was not an independent train and the name 'Grand Trunk express' only referred to the 2 through carriages operating between Mangalore and Peshawar. Shortly after the inauguration of the service, from 15 October 1929, the two through carriages operating between Mangalore and Peshawar were restricted to run between Mettupalayam and Delhi with Slip Coach to Peshawar/Landi Kotal . From 1 March 1930, the service was extended to Lahore. As the train consisted of only 2 through coaches, it proved insufficient to meet the traffic requirements. In addition, the train's schedule depended on the schedules of the trains carrying the through carriages, and was thus subject to regular delays. This led to a revision in the operation of the train and the revamped 'Grand Trunk express' commenced operating as a dedicated daily train between Madras and Delhi from 1 September 1930. The rakes used for the train were supplied by the

for the next few years. Until the mid-1960s, the Grand Trunk Express completed the 1356 mile journey between Madras and

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

in about 50 hours. After the introduction of the Dakshin Express in 1968, the Grand Trunk Express was moved to a faster schedule. For a few years after the change in schedule, the train operated as a fully air-conditioned service for two days every week and with a mixed consist on the remaining 5 days. In time, the air-conditioned service was discontinued. Today, the train covers the 2182.4 kilometer journey in 35 hours and 15 minutes, with 40 halts (exclusive of the terminals) at an average speed of 62kmph. From 10 December 2015, the train started terminating at instead of . From 12 May 2018, the terminal was reverted to . From 9 February 2024, This train got shifted to Madras Egmore few kms away from

Chennai Central Chennai Central (officially Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. M.G. Ramachandran Central Railway Station, formerly Madras Central) (station code: MAS), is an NSG–1 category Indian railway station in Chennai railway division of Southern Railway zone ...

. Additional stoppage provided in

Chennai Egmore Chennai Egmore (formerly: Madras Egmore, also known as Chennai Elumbur)(station code: MS), is an NSG–1 category Indian railway station in Chennai railway division of Southern Railway zone. Situated in the neighborhood of Egmore, it is one ...

Timings

12615 Madras Egmore -

Grand Trunk Express leaves Madras Egmore by 17:40 and reaches

by 05:05 the third day. 12616

- Madras Egmore Grand Trunk Express leaves

by 16:10 and reaches Madras Egmore by 05:00 the third day.

Schedule and service

The train passes through the states of

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

and

. As per the numbering of the Indian Railways, the train has been assigned the numbers 12615/12616, with 12615 being assigned for the Madras Egmore (MS) –

(NDLS) run and 12616 for the

(NDLS) – Madras Egmore (MS) run.

Coach composition

It runs with

LHB coach Linke-Hofmann-Busch (LHB) coach is a passenger coach of Indian Railways that is developed by Linke-Hofmann-Busch of Germany and produced by rail coach manufacturing units at Kapurthala, Chennai and Raebareli. They have been used since 2000 on ...

. It has a total of 22 coaches. * 1 AC First Class Cum AC Two Tier * 2 AC Two Tier * 6 AC Three Tier * 6 Sleeper class * 1

Pantry car A dining car (American English) or a restaurant car (British English), also a diner, is a passenger railroad car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant. These cars provide the highest level of service of any rai ...

* 4 General Unreserved * 1 Luggage Cum Disabled Coach * 1 End On Generator Car

Route and halts

The important halts of Grand Trunk Express are :- * * * *

Ongole Ongole (), natively known as Ongolu, is a city in Prakasam district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Prakasam district. It is known for Ongole cattle, an indigenous breed of oxen. Etymology The name 'Ongole' i ...

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Traction

It is hauled by a

Royapuram Royapuram is a locality in the northern part of the city of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is best known for its beach, and for Royapuram Railway Station. The station is the first railway station of South India, opening in 1856, and is today ...

based

WAP-7 The Indian locomotive class WAP-7 is a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in 1999 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Passenger traffic ...

locomotive on its entire journey.

Gallery

File:Grand Trunk Express - AC 2 tier coach.jpg , Grand Trunk Express – AC 2 tier coach File:Grand Trunk Express with Erode based WAP 4.jpg , Grand Trunk Express with

Erode Erode (; īrōṭu), is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Kaveri river and is surrounded by the Western Ghats. Erode is the seventh largest urban agglomeration in Tamil Nadu. It is the administrativ ...

-based

WAP-4 The Indian locomotive class WAP-4 is a class of 25 kV AC electric locomotives that was developed in 1993 by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works for Indian Railways. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), AC Current (A), Passenger traffic (P) l ...

File:Grand Trunk Express - Train board.jpg , Grand Trunk Express – Train board File:Grand Trunk Express - AC 2 tier coach - A3.jpg , Grand Trunk Express – AC 2 tier coach – A3 File:Grand Trunk Express - AC 3 tier coach.jpg , Grand Trunk Express – AC 3 tier coach

References

External links

Indian Railways Official Site

GT Express Route Map
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grand Trunk Expres Transport in Chennai Transport in Delhi Named passenger trains of India Express trains in India Rail transport in Tamil Nadu Rail transport in Madhya Pradesh Rail transport in Andhra Pradesh Rail transport in Telangana Rail transport in Delhi Rail transport in Uttar Pradesh Rail transport in Rajasthan Rail transport in Haryana Railway services introduced in 1929

History

Timings

Schedule and service

Coach composition

Route and halts

Traction

Gallery

See also

References

External links