Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday virtually flagged off the inaugural journey of the Pravasi Bharatiya Express, a special tourist train for the Indian diaspora, from Janata Maidan, the venue of 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) convention, in Odisha capital.
This date marks the anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s return from South Africa to India in 1915. The train start its three-week journey from Nizamuddin railway station in Delhi, covering multiple destinations of touristic and religious importance in India, including Ayodhya, Patna, Gaya, Varanasi, Mahabalipuram, Rameswaram, Madurai, Kochi, Goa, Ekta Nagar (Kevadia), Ajmer, Pushkar, and Agra, for a period of three weeks.
It can accommodate 156 passengers.
The service has been launched under the Ministry of External Affairs’ Pravasi Teerth Darshan Yojana (PTDY) in association with the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). It has been designed exclusively for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), who are in the age group of 45 and 65, with an aim to connect the diaspora with their cultural and spiritual roots.
The PM had arrived in the state capital last evening to formally inaugurate the PBD, which had commenced with Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas on Wednesday. “He will also inaugurate four exhibitions and then take a tour of the exhibitions and promotional stalls of Union and state ministries and departments,” officials added.
The 18th PBD is being jointly organised by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Odisha government from January 8 to January 10. The theme of the convention is ‘Diaspora’s Contribution to a Viksit Bharat.
