Kalinga Utkal Express

The 18477 / 18478 Kalinga Utkal Express is an important Express of Indian Railways connecting two pilgrimage centres of India, Yog Nagari Rishikesh and Puri.





History
Kalinga Utkal Express was introduced in 1969 as train no.77/78 Utkal Express, a bi-weekly train from Puri to Hazrat Nizamuddin. The frequency of the train was later increased to 4 days a week. In 1983 Utkal Express was merged with erstwhile train no.143/144 Kalinga Express to become Kalinga Utkal Express and the frequency was also increased to daily.

Route and halts
The train runs from Puri via Khurda Road, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Balasore, Tatanagar, Chakradharpur, Rourkela, Jharsuguda, Raigarh, Champa, Bilaspur, Pendra Road, Anuppur Junction, Shahdol, Umaria, Katni Murwara, Saugor, Khurai, Jhansi Junction, Gwalior, Dholpur, Agra Cantonment, Mathura Junction, Hazrat Nizamuddin, Meerut City, Muzaffarnagar, Tapri Junction, Roorkee, Haridwar to Yog Nagari Rishikesh.

Locomotive
It is hauled by Tughlakabad / Ghaziabad-based WAP-7 locomotive on its entire journey.

Rakes
This train has total 5 rakes running between Puri & Haridwar. The train has 24 coaches comprising One A/C 2-Tier One A/C 1-Tier Four A/C 3-tier Twelve Sleeper class Three General compartments (unreserved) Two Luggage van (SLR) and One pantry car.

Accidents
On 19 August 2017, heading to Haridwar in Uttarakhand from Puri in Odisha, the Kalinga-Utkal Express derailed with fourteen coaches of the train going off track in Khatauli in Uttar Pradesh. The incident resulted in the death of 23 people while injuring 40 others. Minister for Railways, Suresh Prabhu, ordered an inquiry into the incident.