Indian Railways is our nation’s lifeline and the third biggest rail network in the world. It ferries over 30 million passengers daily on over 10,000 passenger trains across the country and serves over 7500 railway stations.
The task of running a network on time and with accuracy and efficiency is a gargantuan and complex one. In spite of this, the Indian Railways has been making constant efforts to reach all information regarding its trains conveniently, efficiently and accurately to every passenger travelling on any one of its trains.
The oldest and most common method of imparting train related information is through the enquiry help line for Running Train Timetable. The phone numbers for train enquiry helpline are 139, 1330, 131, 1336, 1332, etc.
But phone enquiries for train information have become a thing of the past. People no longer ring up 139 and its sister numbers for getting information on updated status of trains, departure and arrival timings of trains, train schedules, delay in trains, etc. The main frustration with the traditional help lines is that at most times, all these lines are busy being flooded with calls and people do not like to deal with the heavy traffic on these lines.
Now, the question comes, which concerns most of us: How to check the current train running status in India? The answer to this problem is no longer negative. Nowadays, there is provision for online checking of train status.
The main agency to check train running status India is the Indian Railways website. Online facility for Indian Railways train running status has made things easier and simpler for train passengers throughout India.
Most passengers use the Railways timetable service on the Indian Railways website, which helps in tracking trains across the country. The ‘enhanced national train enquiry system’ made available by the Indian Railways has garnered a National Award for providing a useful service of Indian Railways train running status enquiry for passengers.
Online services are also provided by websites like www.trainenquiry.com, www.indianrail.gov.in, www. erail.in, indiarailinfo.com, www.irctc.co.in, www.travelkhana.com, etc. Here is how some of these sites operate:
www.trainenquiry.com: It provides a ‘spot your train’ service. Enter train number, journey/ boarding/ arrival station and journey / boarding/ arrival date. You will get a comprehensive feedback on queried station, expected departure, current position, last updated station and expected departure. It also gets ‘live station update’: enter name of stations to get the name of trains, the time limit, types of trains, etc. Another service is finding ‘Train Schedule’: enter train number to get station, day, scheduled arrival, scheduled departure and distance (km) between stops. For ‘trains rescheduled’, provide train number and start date and you will get a list of rescheduled trains, including train name, train number, train type, source and destination.
You can also get train information using a Smartphone. The website www.trainenquiry.com is compatible with all smart phones and you can ascertain train running status using this website on your Smartphone.
Etrain.info: One must enter details like train name or train number to get route and running status. Give station name to track arrival and departure at stations.
IRCTC site: Train running status is useful information especially for planning a journey by train. Nowadays, passengers can go online to track the live progress of train running status. The IRCTC running trains status will help in this regard. Log on to irctc.co.in. Enter the destination (to and fro). It will reveal all trains on that route. Choose a particular train and get details. The site also indicates the last two stations crossed by the train and the next two stops, as well as arrival time at theses stops.
Travelkhana.com: In addition to the business of train food delivery, this online company has introduced a special feature like ‘track your train’ in addition to several others like ticket booking etc. It works in the following way: At the top, there is a box for entering train name or train number. Proceed now to a drop down menu where you can select your station. You must now indicate whether you want arrival time or departure time. You will get railway running status online and position of the train on map. Auto tracking of train movement is also possible. You can use this service not only on the train, but also on the platform. This service is useful for those waiting to meet others on the train as they can judge the right time to wait.
For information on trains or to place orders for food, one can log on to www.travelkhana.com. Else you can call the company’s helpline- 0-8800-31-31-31, which is available from 7 am to 10 pm. It does not charge extra for booking or for delivery of food. With our cutting edge website, one can track the movement of the train accurately. You need to provide station name, train number, and code as well as PNR number for a quick alert on the current Indian railway running status online. Note that running stations are updated regularly so you need to key in details every time you want an update.
SIMRAN (Satellite Imaging for Rail Navigation): It is a technology to track the train running status through satellites and was developed by the Indian Railways along with I.I.T. Kanpur. Live status will be provided by 139 helpline number, SMS and website of the railways.
These are some of the means by which very rail traveller can keep tabs on the trains of the Indian railways.