The South Central Railway (SCR) has introduced three special trains between Hyderabad and Anakapalle in Andhra Pradesh to accommodate the increased passenger traffic during the upcoming Sankranti festival. These trains will operate between Charlapalli station and Anakapalle. The first train, Anakapalle-Charalapalli (07479), will depart from Anakapalle at 10.30 p.m. on January 18 and arrive at Charalapalli at 11.30 a.m. the next day. The second train, Charalapalli-Anakapalle (07477), will leave Charalapalli at 12.40 a.m. on January 19 and reach Anakapalle at 9 p.m. the same day.
The third special train (07478) will depart from Anakapalle at 10.30 p.m. on January 19 and reach Charalapalli at 11.30 a.m. the following day. In addition to these, SCR had previously announced four special trains between Hyderabad and Sirpur Kagazhnagar and 10 special trains between Hyderabad and Vijayawada. SCR has planned over 170 special trains on various routes including Vijayawada, Kakinada, Machilipatnam, Visakhapatnam, and Narsapur in Andhra Pradesh to manage the festive rush, with an additional 130 special trains scheduled across Andhra Pradesh.
To handle the expected surge in passenger numbers during the Sankranti festival, SCR has implemented several measures. The average daily footfall during the festival period is estimated to be around 2.20 lakh passengers at Secunderabad, 50,000 at Lingampalli, and 35,000 at Charlapalli stations. The ground operations team, comprising TTEs and Railway Protection Force (RPF) personnel, has been stationed at Secunderabad station, with additional staff deployed at all entry and exit points.
A CCTV surveillance control room has been established, and a 24×7 operational war room is set up in the divisional Headquarters. Safety measures include fully barricaded construction sites and clearance of obstructions at entry and exit points to ensure smooth passenger flow. Due to ongoing redevelopment at Secunderabad Railway Station, parking is temporarily suspended, with limited pick-up/drop-off available at Platform No. 1. Access control at the Bhoiguda entrance (Platform No.10 side) has been temporarily lifted off to facilitate passenger movement at Secunderabad station parking.
