No platform tickets will be available between November 2 to November 13.

Indian Railways operated Northern Railway has introduced 78 special trains in order to handle the rush during Diwali and Chhath festivals, reported Press Trust of India (PTI). This year, the festival of Diwali falls on November 7, while the Chhath Puja is on November 13. Millions of people from different states, working in the National Capital Region head home during these festivals. These special trains will run till November 15. A total of 519 trips are scheduled during this period. The Railway Board has instructed the Northern Railway to maintain punctuality of these special trains, the report added.

Here are 5 things to know:

1. The ministry has asked Northern Railway to place these special trains on platforms at least 30 minutes before their scheduled departure to ensure that the passengers have ample time to board.

2. No platform tickets will be available between November 2 to November 13, so as to limit the passengers on platforms to facilitate those boarding or alighting the trains, the report added.

3.A statement said that while on an average about 8.5 lakh passengers are handled each day at the various terminals in the national capital area on normal days, the New Delhi railway station alone witnesses a daily footfall of up to six lakhs during these festivals.

4. Similarly, on normal days, the Anand Vihar Terminal handles around 50,000 passengers daily, which increases to above 80,000 during Diwali/Chhath. There is about 20-30 per cent increase in traveller volume at Delhi Junction station at this time.

5. During this period, RPF staffs are deployed in large numbers for forming queues of passengers at platforms to enable them to board the trains in a disciplined manner. Constant CCTV camera monitoring is done of all the major stations and additional ones are installed for covering every inch of the station premises.

(With PTI inputs)