Indian Railways has announced special arrangements for passengers planning to travel home during Rakshabandhan 2026.
With trains expected to be crowded and many regular services already seeing heavy bookings, the Railways will operate six special trains on selected routes.
These special trains will connect Lucknow, Bareilly, Roorkee and Haridwar.
They are scheduled to run from August 22 to August 31, 2026. Extra coaches will also be added to some regular trains to increase seat availability.
Six Special Trains to Run for Rakshabandhan
According to the Railways, four special trains will operate between Bareilly and Roorkee. In addition, two unreserved special trains will run between Haridwar and Lucknow.
The Bareilly-Roorkee-Bareilly special trains will operate with train numbers 04321 and 04320. The Roorkee-Bareilly-Roorkee services will run with train numbers 04319 and 04322.
Meanwhile, the Haridwar-Lucknow-Haridwar unreserved special trains will operate with train numbers 04329 and 04330.
These services are expected to help manage the festival rush and make it easier for passengers to reach their hometowns.
Check Major Stoppages of Special Trains
The Haridwar-Lucknow special train will stop at several important stations, including Lucknow, Sandila, Balamau, Hardoi, Shahjahanpur, Bareilly, Rampur, Moradabad, Najibabad and Haridwar.
The Bareilly-Roorkee special train will also have stoppages at major stations such as Rampur, Moradabad, Kanth, Seohara, Dhampur, Nagina, Najibabad, Muzaffarnagar, Chandok and Laksar.
These stops will make the special services useful for passengers travelling from several cities and towns along the routes.
Extra Coaches to Be Added to 8 Trains
Apart from running special trains, the Railways has decided to increase the number of coaches on eight trains operating between Delhi and Purvanchal via Moradabad.
One additional sleeper coach will be added to each selected train. These services include Padmavat Express, Ayodhya Cantt-Delhi Express, Sampoorna Kranti Superfast Express, Humsafar Express and Intercity Superfast.
Adding extra coaches will increase the number of available berths and could improve the chances of waitlisted passengers getting confirmed tickets.
Passengers May Get Relief From Festival Rush
Rakshabandhan usually sees a sharp rise in the number of people travelling home, making it difficult to find confirmed train tickets.
With six special trains and additional coaches planned for eight regular trains, passengers travelling during the festival period could get more options and better seat availability.
Travellers should check the latest train schedule and ticket availability before planning their journey.
