Having embarked upon its maiden journey from Mumbai Central station (then Bombay Central) to the national capital on May 17, 1972, the Western Railway’s prestigious Mumbai–New Delhi Rajdhani Express completed 50 glorious years of its operation between the two cities, on Tuesday.

To celebrate this Golden Jubilee celebration, Western Railway organised a commemorative event at Mumbai Central station & flagged off the train in a befitting grand honour. A special postal cover and a VIP album were also released to mark this occasion. While Principal Chief Commissioner, Mumbai CGST Ashok Kumar Mehta was the chief guest of the ceremony, Chief Postmaster General, Maharashtra Circle Veena R Srinivas and Divisional Railway Manager of Mumbai Central Division G V L Satyakumar were prominent among those present on the occasion. Members of the Rotaract Club of HR College performed a flash mob skit on the occasion. Two senior  WR officials who retired from railway service working in this prestigious train, and one serving employee shared their memorable experiences.

Souvenir tickets and mementos were presented to the travelling passengers. Also, instant photographs were clicked to cherish their journey on this memorable day.

Ninety-year-old Qamruzzaman Sarang, one of the passengers who had travelled by the maiden trip of Rajdhani Express is undertaking his journey to the national capital on this historic day. He was the first person to receive the souvenir ticket from the Chief Guest Ashok Kumar Mehta. Thakur stated that the Rajdhani Express offered impeccable services, fastest speed, punctuality and sumptuous catering services.

The Mumbai — New Delhi Rajdhani Express covers a distance of 1383 km in 15 hours and 32 minutes, traversing through seven states.

In 1972, Indian Railways introduced the second Rajdhani Express over Indian Railways connecting the national capital, Delhi, to the financial capital, Mumbai. The first Rajdhani Express was introduced between Howrah-Delhi, three years back in 1969.