Overview | |
---|---|
Status | Operating |
Locale | Dhaka and Chittagong |
First service | 25 June 2016 |
Current operator(s) | Bangladesh Railway |
Website | http://www.railway.gov.bd/ |
Route | |
Stops | 1 |
Average journey time | 5 hours & 20 minutes |
Service frequency | 7 days a week |
On-board services | |
Catering facilities | On-board |
Technical | |
Rolling stock |
|
The Shonar Bangla Express (Train no. 787/788) is an inter-city rail service run by Bangladesh Railway. This service provides a swift and luxurious passenger rail connection between the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka to the port city of Chattogram. This service only has one intermediate stop at Dhaka Airport. [1]
Shonar Bangla was introduced as a nonstop inter-city train that offers quality food and fast service. Since its inauguration, the train had started from Dhaka Railway Station . Shonar Bangla gets the 2nd top priority on Bangladesh Railway network. It only gives stoppage at Dhaka Airport Station. The fare of the train is similar with Suborno Express. From 2021,food price doesn't include with ticket supplied by Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation. On 16th of April, 2023, during an Eid Trip. Shonar Bangla derailed and hit a goods train in Nangalkot, Comilla at 6:30PM. 5 of the compartments have derailed and 50 have been injured with no deaths. [2] [3]
The train departs Dhaka railway station at 07:00 AM (Bangladesh Standard Time) and arrives in Chittagong at 12:15 PM. On the return trip, it departs Chittagong at 05:00 PM and arrives in Dhaka at 10:05 PM. This train runs 6 days a week. [4]
The train currently runs with 14 Indonesia-made red-green PT INKA air-brake coaches. However, sometimes the train pulls up to 18 coaches if there is compelling demand. These coaches were imported in 2016. However after the accident at 16th April 2023. 7 compartments was badly damaged to even be repaired. Shonar Bangla temporarily used South Korean coaches made by Sung Sing Rolling Stock Technology (SSRST) for the Eid Trips on April 19th after suspending Shonar Bangla Service for 3 days before switching to Indonesian Made PT-INKA.
Shonar Bangla Express is hauled by a Class 3000 of Bangladesh Railway. The train needs an air-braked locomotive which is mandatory.
Chittagong, officially Chattogram, is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. It is the administrative seat of an eponymous division and district. The city is located on the banks of the Karnaphuli River between the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the Bay of Bengal. The Greater Chittagong Area had a population of more than 5.2 million in 2022. In 2020, the city area had a population of more than 3.2 million. The city is home to many large local businesses and plays an important role in the Bangladeshi economy.
The University of Chittagong is a public research university located in Hathazari, Chattogram, Bangladesh. It was established on 18 August 1966. It is one of the oldest universities in Bangladesh. Its 2,312.32 acres (935.76 ha) campus is the largest among universities in Bangladesh. It is one of the four autonomous by the act universities of Bangladesh.
Shah Amanat International Airport, Chattogram is an international airport serving Bangladesh's southeastern port city of Chittagong. Operated and maintained by the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh, it is the second-largest international airport in Bangladesh after Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is used by the Bangladesh Air Force as a part of 'BAF Zahurul Haq Base'. It was formerly known as MA Hannan International Airport, named after Awami League politician M. A. Hannan, but was renamed on 2 April 2005 by the Government of Bangladesh, after an 18th-century Islamic saint, Shah Amanat. It is capable of annually handling 1.5 million passengers and 6,000 tonnes of cargo. It also serves as a base for the Arirang Flying School.
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Parabat Express is an intercity train which runs between Dhaka and Sylhet, two important cities in Bangladesh. It has been considered one of the most prestigious and luxurious trains since the inception of intercity train in Bangladesh in 1986.
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Suborno Express is an intercity train of Bangladesh Railway which runs between Dhaka and Chittagong. Suborno Express has been considered one of the prestigious trains since it is considered the first luxurious non-stop train in the country. The train connects the capital Dhaka with Port City Chittagong of Bangladesh.
The Banalata Express is a Bangladeshi Intercity train which runs between Chapainawabganj and Dhaka under Bangladesh Railway.
The Drutajan Express is an inter-city train of Bangladesh Railway service. It gives service between the capital Dhaka and the northern Panchagarh District. At first it was operated from Dinajpur to Dhaka Cantonment Station, then extended to Panchagarh and Kamalapur. It is one of the fastest and luxury trains in Bangladesh.
The Panchagarh Express is a Semi non-stop intercity train which runs between Dhaka and the most northern Panchagarh District. The train connects the capital to northern Bengal.
Kurigram Express is a non-stop intercity train that runs between Dhaka and the northern Kurigram District. This train provides a more effective connection between the capital and northern Bengal.
Chattogram Railway Station is a railway station in Bangladesh, situated at Battoli, Station Road of Chattogram District. It is one of the largest railway stations of the country. This station has an old and a new terminal.
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The Mitali Express (13131/13132) train is an international express rail service which connects the Indian city of Siliguri with the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka every week. Together with the Maitree Express train and the Bandhan Express train, the Mitali Express train is the third modern-day fully air conditioned passenger train link between the Indian state of West Bengal and Bangladesh. Both the prime ministers of the two neighbouring countries officially inaugurated the non-stop passenger train with ten compartments on the new 513 km route from Dhaka on 26 March 2021, the day Bangladesh celebrated the golden jubilee of its independence. The prime minister of India was in Dhaka to mark the auspicious occasion of fifty years of independence of Bangladesh. After 56 years of stoppage, this train route recreates the previous Siliguri route between India and Bangladesh. A valid visa and passport is required beforehand to purchase a ticket for the Mitali Express train. Tickets are available at Dhaka Kamalapur railway station in Dhaka, Bangladesh and at New Jalpaiguri railway station in Siliguri, India.
Bangladesh Television Chattogram or Bangladesh Television Chittagong, branded on-air as BTV Chittagong or BTV Chattogram, sometimes known as CTV, is a BTV-affiliated television station broadcast from Chittagong, serving southeastern Bangladesh. It is the network's first and currently the only regional television station. It was launched in 1996 and initially broadcast for one and a half hours, but the broadcast schedule significantly increased over time. It broadcasts on a full-day basis daily on both terrestrial and satellite television.