Panaji | The Konkan Railway on Tuesday announced 254 special trains to facilitate the movement of passengers during the upcoming Ganpati festival.

The special services have been planned to ensure smooth and comfortable travel for passengers visiting their hometowns and other destinations during the festival, which will begin with Ganesh Chaturthi on September 14.

As many as 246 of the 254 special trains would be operated in coordination with the Central Railway on various routes between September 11 and 27, KRCL Deputy General Manager Baban Ghatge told reporters at Margao in South Goa.

These trains will be run between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in Mumbai and Sawantwadi, Ratnagiri, Madgaon and Mangaluru, as well as on the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus-Ratnagiri, LTT-Madgaon, LTT-Mangaluru, Pune-Ratnagiri and Pune-Sawantwadi routes, he said.

The services would operate on different dates, and passengers should check the National Train Enquiry System (NTES) or the Konkan Railway app for the exact dates and timings, the official said.

Eight additional special trains, to be operated in coordination with the Western Railway, will originate from stations including Bandra Terminus (Mumbai), Vadodara (Gujarat), Vishvamitri (Gujarat), Bhusawal (Maharashtra) and Valsad (Gujarat).

Bookings for all the special trains have commenced.

"I request passengers to go ahead and book tickets on these special trains rather than depending on the regular trains being run by Konkan Railway, so that they can travel comfortably," Ghatge said