Lok Sabha Question No. 4164 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Direct Rail Connectivity for Bhind Railway Station
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Smt. Sandhya Ray

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4164 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18.03.2026

## DIRECT RAIL CONNECTIVITY FOR BHIND RAILWAY STATION

## †4164. SMT. SANDHYA RAY:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government proposes to lay a new rail line or start any new express/superfast  train  to  provide  direct  train  connectivity  to  Bhind district  of  Madhya  Pradesh  with  the  national  capital  of  Delhi  and  the State capital at Bhopal and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether any proposal to start a direct train service from Bhind to Delhi and Bhopal or to extend any existing train is under consideration of the Government and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the specific plans formulated to strengthen train connectivity for Datia, the  city  of  Pitambara  Peeth,  Ratangarh  Mata  Temple  and  other  major Shaktipeeths keeping in view the growing religious tourism at the said sites;
- (d) whether the Government proposes to develop Datia railway station as a centre of religious tourism and expand passenger facilities therein; and
- (e)  if  so,  the  present  status  and  likely  timeline  for  the  completion  of  the said proposed projects?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND

ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

- (a) to (e)  Bhind  station,  located  on  the   Gwalior-Etawah  section,  is presently served by 07  pairs of train services  which are listed below:

|   SN | Train no. and name                                       |
|------|----------------------------------------------------------|
|    1 | 11903/11904 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi - Etawah Express |
|    2 | 19811/19812 Kota - Etawah Express                        |

|   3 | 20961/20962 Udhna - Banaras Express   |
|-----|---------------------------------------|
|   4 | 21125/21126 Ratlam - Bhind Express    |
|   5 | 64633/64634 Gwalior - Etawah MEMU     |
|   6 | 64641/64642 Gwalior - Etawah MEMU     |
|   7 | 64643/64644 Gwalior - Bhind MEMU      |

These  include  05  pairs  of  train  services  catering  to  the  needs  of  BhindEtawah sector. Etawah is further connected to Delhi by 21 pairs of trains. Bhind-Gwalior sector is served by 07 pairs of train services while GwaliorBhopal  sector  is  served  by  55  pairs  of  train  services.  The  lists  of  trains serving these sectors are as under:

## Trains serving Bhind-Etawah sector:

|   SN | Train no. and name                                     |
|------|--------------------------------------------------------|
|    1 | 20961/20962 Udhna-Banaras Express                      |
|    2 | 64641/64642 Gwalior-Etawah MEMU                        |
|    3 | 19811/19812 Kota-Etawah Express                        |
|    4 | 64633/64634 Gwalior-Etawah MEMU                        |
|    5 | 11903/11904 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi-Etawah Express |

## Trains serving Etawah-Delhi sector:

|   SN | Train no. and name                                         |
|------|------------------------------------------------------------|
|    1 | 15565/15566 Lalitgram-New Delhi Express                    |
|    2 | 12381/12382 Howrah-New Delhi Express                       |
|    3 | 12303/12304 Howrah-New Delhi Express                       |
|    4 | 12225/12223 Azamgarh-Delhi Express                         |
|    5 | 20801/20802 Islampur-New Delhi Express                     |
|    6 | 12033/12034 Kanpur Central-New Delhi Shatabdi Express      |
|    7 | 15557/15558 Darbhanga-Anand Vihar (T) Amrit Bharat Express |
|    8 | 12419/12420 Lucknow-New Delhi Express                      |
|    9 | 14151/14152 Kanpur Central-Anand Vihar (T) Express         |
|   10 | 15483/15484 Alipur Duar-Delhi Express                      |
|   11 | 18309/18310 Sambalpur-Jammu Tawi Express                   |
|   12 | 18101/18102 Tatanagar-Jammu Tawi Express                   |
|   13 | 12311/12312 Howrah-Kalka Express                           |
|   14 | 15133/15134 Chhapra-Anand Vihar (T) Amrit Bharat Express   |

|   15 | 12505/12506 Kamakhya-Anand Vihar (T) Express       |
|------|----------------------------------------------------|
|   16 | 12875/12876 Puri-Anand Vihar (T) Express           |
|   17 | 12003/12004 Lucknow Ljn-New Delhi Shatabdi Express |
|   18 | 15707/15708 Katihar-Amritsar Express               |
|   19 | 14217/14218 Prayagraj Sangam-Chandigarh Express    |
|   20 | 14117/14118 Prayagraj-Bhiwani Express              |
|   21 | 15733/15734 Balurghat-Bathinda Express             |

## Trains serving Bhind-Gwalior sector:

|   SN | Train no. and name                                             |
|------|----------------------------------------------------------------|
|    1 | 20961/20962 20961/Udhna - Banaras Express                      |
|    2 | 11903/11904 11903/Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi - Etawah Express |
|    3 | 64633/64634 Gwalior - Etawah MEMU                              |
|    4 | 64641/64642 Gwalior - Etawah MEMU                              |
|    5 | 21125/21126 Ratlam - Bhind Express                             |
|    6 | 19811/19812 Kota - Etawah Express                              |
|    7 | 64633/64634 Gwalior - Etawah MEMU                              |

## Trains serving Gwalior-Bhopal sector:

|   SN | Train no. and name                                                 |
|------|--------------------------------------------------------------------|
|    1 | 11058/11057 Amritsar-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T) Express       |
|    2 | 11078/11077 Jammu Tawi-Pune Express                                |
|    3 | 11086/11085 Gwalior -Smvt Bengaluru Express                        |
|    4 | 12002/12001 New Delhi-Rani Kamalapati Shatabdi Express             |
|    5 | 12138/12137 Firozpur Cant-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T) Express  |
|    6 | 12148/12147 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Kolhapur Express                     |
|    7 | 12156/12155 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Rani Kamalapati Express              |
|    8 | 12162/12161 Agra Cantt -Lokmanya Tilak (T) Express                 |
|    9 | 12191/12192 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Jabalpur Express                     |
|   10 | 12198/12197 Gwalior -Bhopal Express                                |
|   11 | 12270/12269 Hazrat Nizamuddin- Mgr Chennai Central Duronto Express |
|   12 | 12406/12405 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Bhusaval Express                     |
|   13 | 12410/12409 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Raigarh Express                      |
|   14 | 12422/12421 Amritsar-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                    |
|   15 | 12434/12433 Hazrat Nizamuddin- MGR Chennai Central Rajdhani        |

|    | Express                                                               |
|----|-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
| 16 | 12440/12439 Shri Ganganagar-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                |
| 17 | 12442/12441 New Delhi-Bilaspur Rajdhani Express                       |
| 18 | 12486/12485 Shri Ganganagar-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                |
| 19 | 12612/12611 Hazrat Nizamuddin- MGR Chennai Central Garib Rath         |
| 20 | 12616/12615 New Delhi- Mgr Chennai Central Express                    |
| 21 | 12618/12617 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Ernakulam Express                       |
| 22 | 12622/12621 New Delhi- Mgr Chennai Central Express                    |
| 23 | 12626/12625 New Delhi-Thiruvananthapuram Central Express              |
| 24 | 12628/12627 New Delhi-KSR Bengaluru Express                           |
| 25 | 12644/12643 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Thiruvananthapuram Central Express      |
| 26 | 12646/12645 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Ernakulam Express                       |
| 27 | 12648/12647 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Coimbatore Express                      |
| 28 | 12650/12649 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Yesvantpur Express                      |
| 29 | 12708/12707 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Tirupati Express                        |
| 30 | 12716/12715 Amritsar-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                       |
| 31 | 12722/12721 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Hyderabad Express                       |
| 32 | 12724/12723 New Delhi-Hyderabad Express                               |
| 33 | 12752/12751 Jammu Tawi-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                     |
| 34 | 12780/12779 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Vasco Da Gama Express                   |
| 35 | 12782/12781 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Mysore Express                          |
| 36 | 12804/12803 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Visakhapatnam Express                   |
| 37 | 12808/12807 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Visakhapatnam Express                   |
| 38 | 12920/12919 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Dr. Ambedkar Nagar Express   |
| 39 | 14314/14313 Bareilly-Lokmanya Tilak (T) Express                       |
| 40 | 14320/14319 Bareilly-Indore Express                                   |
| 41 | 14622/14621 Firozpur Cant-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                  |
| 42 | 16032/16031 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra- Mgr Chennai Central Express |
| 43 | 16318/16317 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Kanniyakumari Express        |
| 44 | 16788/16787 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Tirunelveli Express          |
| 45 | 18238/18237 Amritsar-Bilaspur Express                                 |

|   46 | 20172/20171 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Rani Kamalapati Vande Bharat Express             |
|------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|   47 | 20424/20423 Firozpur Cant-Seoni Express                                        |
|   48 | 20494/20493 Chandigarh-Madurai Express                                         |
|   49 | 20658/20657 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Sss Hubballi Express                             |
|   50 | 20806/20805 New Delhi-Visakhapatnam Express                                    |
|   51 | 22126/22125 Amritsar-Nagpur Express                                            |
|   52 | 22222/22221 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T) Rajdhani Express |
|   53 | 22456/22455 Kalka-Sainagar Shirdi Express                                      |
|   54 | 22692/22691 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Ksr Bengaluru Rajdhani Express                   |
|   55 | 22710/22709 Amb Andaura-Hazur Sahib Nanded Express                             |

Bhind is an existing station on Indian Railway Network and well connected with  Delhi  and  Bhopal.  Further,  to  improve  connectivity  in  the  region, survey of Mahoba to Bhind new line via Orai and Rath (217 km) has been sanctioned for preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR).

After preparation of DPR, sanctioning of project requires consultation with various stake-holders including State Governments and necessary approvals viz. appraisal of NITI Aayog,  Ministry of Finance  etc. As sanctioning  of  projects  is  a  continuous  and  dynamic  process,  exact timelines cannot be fixed.

## Datia

To  improve  connectivity  and  to  cater  to  needs  of  passengers  of  Datia station,  stoppage  of  12409/12410  Raigarh-Hazrat  Nizamuddin  Gondwana Express (w.e.f. 10.06.2025) and 22469/22470 Khajuraho-Hazrat Nizamuddin

Vande Bharat Express (w.e.f. 13.05.2025) have been provided at Datia.

Accordingly,  at  present,  Datia  is  served  by  48  train  services  which  are providing  connectivity  inter  alia  to  major  stations  like  Shri  Mata  Vaishno Devi  Katra,  Kolkata,  Varanasi,  Brahmapur,  Ujjain   etc.  The  list  of  trains serving Datia station is listed below:

|   SN | Train no. and name                                            |
|------|---------------------------------------------------------------|
|    1 | 12409 Raigarh-Hazrat Nizamuddin Express                       |
|    2 | 12920 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Dr. Ambedkar Nagar Express |

|   3 | 11058 Amritsar-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T) Express      |
|-----|-------------------------------------------------------------|
|   4 | 22196 Bandra (T)-Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi Express        |
|   5 | 12189 Jabalpur-Hazrat Nizamuddin Express                    |
|   6 | 12722 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Hyderabad Express                   |
|   7 | 12192 Jabalpur-Hazrat Nizamuddin Express                    |
|   8 | 18477 Puri-Yog Nagari Rishikesh Express                     |
|   9 | 11801 Gwalior-Prayagraj Express                             |
|  10 | 11108 Banaras-Gwalior Express                               |
|  11 | 11807 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi-Agra Cantt Express        |
|  12 | 20807 Visakhapatnam-Amritsar Express                        |
|  13 | 20976 Agra Cantt-Howrah Express                             |
|  14 | 12176 Gwalior-Howrah Express                                |
|  15 | 12178 Mathura-Howrah Express                                |
|  16 | 11904 Etawah-Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi Express            |
|  17 | 22470 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Khajuraho Vande Bharat Express      |
|  18 | 11902 Agra Cantt-Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi Express        |
|  19 | 12138 Firozpur Cant-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T) Express |
|  20 | 18238 Amritsar-Bilaspur Express                             |
|  21 | 18237 Korba-Amritsar Express                                |
|  22 | 11123 Gwalior-Barauni Express                               |
|  23 | 12280 New Delhi-Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi Express         |
|  24 | 19666 Udaipur City-Khajuraho Express                        |
|  25 | 20808 Amritsar-Visakhapatnam Express                        |
|  26 | 19665 Khajuraho-Udaipur City Express                        |
|  27 | 11077 Pune-Jammu Tawi Express                               |
|  28 | 12137 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T)-Firozpur Cant Express |
|  29 | 12279 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi-New Delhi Express         |
|  30 | 20975 Howrah-Agra Cantt Express                             |
|  31 | 12177 Howrah-Mathura Express                                |
|  32 | 12175 Howrah-Gwalior Express                                |
|  33 | 11901 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi-Agra Cantt Express        |
|  34 | 22195 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi-Bandra (T) Express        |
|  35 | 11078 Jammu Tawi-Pune Express                               |
|  36 | 11903 Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi-Etawah Express            |

|   37 | 11802 Prayagraj-Gwalior Express                               |
|------|---------------------------------------------------------------|
|   38 | 18478 Yog Nagari Rishikesh-Puri Express                       |
|   39 | 11124 Barauni-Gwalior Express                                 |
|   40 | 22469 Khajuraho-Hazrat Nizamuddin Vande Bharat Express        |
|   41 | 12190 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Jabalpur Express                      |
|   42 | 11808 Agra Cantt-Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi Express          |
|   43 | 12410 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Raigarh Express                       |
|   44 | 12191 Hazrat Nizamuddin-Jabalpur Express                      |
|   45 | 11057 Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (T)-Amritsar Express        |
|   46 | 12721 Hyderabad-Hazrat Nizamuddin Express                     |
|   47 | 12919 Dr. Ambedkar Nagar-Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Express |
|   48 | 11107 Gwalior-Banaras Express                                 |

Besides, introduction of train services on any route/section,which is an ongoing process,  depends on various factors which include:

-  Capacity of that section.
-  Availability of path.
-  Availability of required rolling stock.
-  Availability of matching infrastructure for rolling stock.
-  Maintenance requirement of railway tracks and other assets.

## Amrit Bharat Stations:

Datia station, located in Madhya Pradesh has been identified for development  under  Amrit  Bharat  Station  Scheme.  Development  works  at Datia station have been taken up at good pace. The works of improvement of station building, platform surface, circulating area and approach road at second  entry,  main  entrance  gate  and  Divyangjan  facilities  have  been completed. The works of lift and 12 m Foot Over Bridge have been taken up.

Further,  development  /  redevelopment  /  upgradation  /  modernisation  of stations on Indian Railways is a continuous and ongoing process and works in  this  regard  are  undertaken  as  per  requirement,  subject  to  inter-se priority and availability of funds. Development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of a station is carried out based on category of station/condition/traffic handled etc.

Ministry  of  Railways  has  launched  Amrit  Bharat  Station  Scheme  for redevelopment of stations with a long-term approach.

The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the stations. The master planning includes:

-  Improvement of access to station and circulating areas
-  Integration of station with both sides of city
-  Improvement of station building
-  Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water booths
-  Provision  of  wider  foot  over  bridge/air  concourse  commensurate  with passenger traffic
-  Provision of lift/escalators/ramp
-  Improvement /Provision of platform surface and cover over platforms
-  Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like 'One Station One Product'
-  Parking areas, Multimodal integration
-  Amenities for Divyangjans
-  Better passenger information systems
-  Provision of executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings,  landscaping,  etc.  keeping  in  view  the  necessity  at  each station

The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment friendly solutions, provision of ballastless tracks etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of a city centre at the station in the long term. Development / upgradation  of  railway  stations  has  a  positive  impact  on  tourism  in  the surrounding areas.

So  far,  1338  stations  have  been  identified  for  development  under  Amrit Bharat  Station  Scheme,  out  of  which  80  stations  are  located  in  Madhya Pradesh.  The  names  of  stations  identified  for  development  under  Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in Madhya Pradesh are as following:

| State          |   No. of Amrit Stations | Names of Amrit Stations                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     |
|----------------|-------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Madhya Pradesh |                      80 | Akodia, Amla, Anuppur, Ashoknagar, Balaghat, Banapura, Bargawan, Beohari, Berchha, Betul, Bhind, Bhopal, Bijuri, Bina, Biyavra Rajgarh, Chhindwara, Dabra, Damoh, Datia, Dewas, Gadarwara, Ganjbasoda, Ghoradongri, Guna, Gwalior, Harda, Harpalpur, Indore |

| Jn, Itarsi Jn, Jabalpur, Junnor Deo, Kareli, Katni Jn, Katni Murwara, Katni South, Khachrod, Khajuraho Jn, Khandwa, Khirkiya, Laxmi Bai Nagar, Maihar, Maksi Jn, Mandla Fort, Mandsor, MCS Chhatarpur, Meghnagar, Morena, Multai, Nagda Jn, Nainpur Jn, Narmadapuram, Narsinghpur, Nepanagar, Nimuch, Orchha, Pandhurna, Pipariya, Ratlam, Rewa, Ruthiyai, Sanchi, Sant Hirdaram Nagar, Satna, Saugor, Sehore, Seoni, Shahdol, Shajapur, Shamgarh, Sheopur Kalan, Shivpuri, Shridham, Shujalpur, Sihora Road, Singrauli, Tikamgarh, Ujjain, Umaria, Vidisha, Vikramgarh Alot   |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

## Completed stations:

Development works at railway stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in Madhya Pradesh have been taken up at a good pace. Details of stations completed in Madhya Pradesh are as under:

| State          |   No. of stations | Name of stations                                                                                                                                             |
|----------------|-------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Madhya Pradesh |                15 | Beohari, Bhind, Chhindwara, Harpalpur, Junnor Deo, Katni South, MCS Chhatarpur, Nainpur Jn, Narmadapuram, Orchha, Sanchi, Seoni, Shajapur, Shridham, Vidisha |

The activities for development at other stations have also been taken up at good pace and progress of some of the stations is as given below:

-  Bhind station: The works of improvement of station building, platform surfacing, platform shelter, improvement of toilet, circulating area, approach  road,  main  entrance  gate,  Divyangjan  facilities  and  12  m  Foot Over Bridge have been completed. The work of lift has been taken up.
-  Dabra Station: The works of improvement of station building, porch, platform shelter, circulating area and approach road, have been completed. The work of 12 m Foot Over Bridge has been taken up.
-  Gwalior station: The structural works  of arrival and departure buildings at West side, concourse, mezzanine, air concourse and Foot Over Bridge at Jhansi end have been completed. The block work of arrival and departure building at East side, arrival passage, platform refurbishment, air concourse, central roof and Foot Over Bridge at Agra end have been taken up.

 Saugor  station:  The  works  of  improvement  of  station  building,  new entry  and  exit  porches,  platform  raising  and  surfacing  of  platform  no.  1, improvement of waiting hall, new toilet block and Divyangjan facilities have been completed. The works of circulating area, parking and 12 m Foot Over Bridge have been taken up Development  /  Upgradation  of  railway  stations  is  complex  in  nature involving  safety  of  passengers  &  trains  and  requires  various  statutory clearances such as fire clearance, heritage, tree cutting, airport clearance etc. The progress also gets affected due to brownfield related challenges such  as  shifting  of  utilities  (involving  water/sewage  lines,  optical  fibre cables, gas pipe lines, power/signal cables, etc.), infringements, operation of trains without hindering passenger movement, speed restrictions due to works carried out in close proximity of tracks and high voltage power lines, etc. and these factors affect the completion time. Development  /  Upgradation  /  Modernization  of  stations  including  Amrit Bharat Station Scheme are generally funded under Plan Head-53 'Customer Amenities'. The  details of  allocation  and  expenditure  under  Plan  Head-53 are  maintained  Zonal  Railway-wise  and  not  work-wise  or  station-wise  or state-wise.  Madhya  Pradesh  is  covered  under  the  jurisdiction  of  seven railway zones, namely Central Railway, East Central Railway, North Central Railway, South Central Railway, South East Central Railway, West Central Railway  and  Western  Railway.  For  these  zones,  an  allocation  of  ₹  5,801 crore  has  been  made  for  the  financial  year  2025-26,  out  of  which  an expenditure (up to February, 2026) of ₹ 5,681 crore has been incurred so far.

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