Durga Puja 2026: Sealdah to run 51 special local trains daily, 38 of them overnight

Eastern Railway's Sealdah division will run 51 special local (EMU) train services every day during the peak of Durga Puja, from 16 to 21 October 2026, to carry crowds visiting pandals in and around Kolkata, the division has announced. That is up from 31 special services last year. Of the 51, 38 will run overnight, between about 11 pm and 5 am, and 13 will run in the evening peak, across the Main, North and South sections. The division has also scheduled 80 long-distance special train trips between 10 and 25 October, compared with 50 in the same period last year.

Durga Puja is the biggest festival of the year in Kolkata, and pandal hopping late into the night is at the heart of it. For visitors from the suburbs, the Sealdah local network is often the most practical way to reach the city's pandals. Overnight trains mean they can stay out late and still get home without depending on taxis or private cars.

The jump from 31 to 51 daily specials is large, and the decision to run most of them overnight shows where the pressure is. Crowds at pandals peak late at night, and the overnight services are timed for exactly that window. Making fast galloping trains stop at every station from 2 pm should also help passengers from smaller stations who would otherwise have to change trains on crowded platforms.

The long-distance specials matter for a different set of travellers: people coming home to Bengal for the festival, and visitors from other states who plan their trips around the Puja. Eighty trips between 10 and 25 October, up from fifty last year, add capacity during the period when regular trains are booked out.

There is one note of caution. One regional report gave a much smaller number of all-night EMU trains than the division's figure of 38, so travellers should check the final timetable published by Eastern Railway or at stations before planning a late journey.

Short-term: Pandal visitors in Kolkata and its suburbs get more late-night trains, and festival travellers to and from Bengal get extra long-distance capacity through the Puja fortnight.

Long-term: Running a high-frequency overnight suburban service during the festival may build a case for regular late-night trains on busy routes during other big events.

Who is affected: Suburban commuters and pandal visitors on the Sealdah network, people travelling home to West Bengal for the Puja, tourists visiting Kolkata, and railway staff working the festival shifts.

Questions and Answers