Title - Kalka-Shirdi train likely to chug into city from May 7 - See more at: http://www.indianexpress.com/n

A train between Kalka and Shirdi is likely to be operational from May 7. It will be a biweekly train that will go via Chandigarh. The train was announced in the Railway Budget 2013-14.

The train will make it easier for the city's Sai devotess to visit the religious place.

A railway official said that the train is likely to make its maiden journey on May 7 and would ply twice a week. The timings of the train and running schedule would be finalised soon, the official added.

With Chandigarh MP Pawan Bansal taking over as the Railways Minister, the train traffic in the city, as well as in other parts of north India, has been witnessing an increase. In fact, the trains that have been announced connect the city to various religious destinations. Apart from the train to Shirdi, a train between Kalka and Katra is in the pipeline. It will benefit those visiting Vaishno Devi. The train will pass through the newly inaugurated Chandigarh-Ludhiana rail link, though it might take a few months for it to be operational.

A train to Amritsar has also been proposed. It will start from Chandigarh in the morning and return to the city the same day. So far, this year has witnessed the flagging off of the third Shatabdi between Chandigarh and Delhi. It was followed by the inauguration of the Chandigarh-Ludhiana rail link.