Train numbering in India
On December 20, 2010 Indian Railways[1] switches to existing four-digit numbering system for Passenger trains with five-digit[2] according to the decision of Ministry of Railways (India).[3] If we know the technique of numbering, it is easy to find details of train like type,zone,division etc. The details of train numbering as follows[4]
The first digit
The first digit of the 5 digit train number indicates the type of the Passenger trains:
Zero (0)
0XXXX for Special train like
- Summer special
- Holiday Special
- Trains to clear extra rush
One (1) or Two (2)
1XXXX or 2XXXX for the Long-distance trains like
Three (3)
3XXXX for the Kolkata Suburban Service
Four (4)
for the Suburban trains like
Five (5)
5XXXX for the Passenger trains with conventional coaches
Six (6)
6XXXX for the MEMU service
Seven (7)
7XXXX for the
Eight (8)
8XXXX for the Premium / Suvidha Express[5]
Nine (9)
9XXXX for the Mumbai Suburban service
Second digit
depends on what the first digit is:
If the first digit is zero (0) or One (1) or Two (2)
then the second digit indicates the operator is the following Railway Zone (but if the second digit is 2, then it doesn't indicates to any operator).
Zero (0)
Y0XXX for
- all the trains of Konkan Railway (KR)
One (1)
Y1XXX for
- all the trains of Central Railway (CR)
- some of the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
Two (2)
Y2XXX for type of trains like
- Rajdhani Express
- Shatabdi Express
- Jan Shatabdi Express
- Garib Rath Express
- Duronto Express
- Sampark Kranti Express
- Gatimaan Express
- AC Superfast trains
- and all other Superfast trains
Three (3)
Y3XXX for
- all the trains of Eastern Railway (ER)
- all the trains of East Central Railway (ECR)
Four (4)
Y4XXX for
- all the trains of Northern Railway (NR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
Five (5)
Y5XXX for
- all the trains of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR)
- all the trains of North Eastern Railway (NER)
Six (6)
Y6XXX for
- all the trains of Southern Railway (SR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Seven (7)
Y7XXX for
- all the trains of South Central Railway (SCR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Eight (8)
Y8XXX for
- all the trains of South Eastern Railway (SER)
- all the trains of South East Central Railway (SECR)
- all the trains of East Coast Railway (ECoR)
Nine (9)
Y9XXX for
- all the trains of Western Railway (WR)
- some of the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
If the first digit is Three (3)
then the second digit indicates the operator is the following Railway Zone:
Zero (0) to Seven (7)
for the 'Eastern Railway (ER)
- 31XXX from Sealdah towards Dum Dum side and further to Dankuni side
- 32XXX from Sealdah towards Dum Dum side and further to Barasat side
- 33XXX from Sealdah towards Dum Dum side and further to Naihati side
- 34XXX from Sealdah towards Ballygunge side and further to Majerhat side
- 35XXX from Sealdah towards Ballygunge side and further to Canning side
- 36XXX from Sealdah towards Ballygunge side and further to Namkhana side
- 37XXX from Sealdah towards Ballygunge side and further to Diamond harbor side
Eight (8) or Nine (9)
for the South Eastern Railway (SER)
- 38XXX
- 39XXX
Depending on the number of services in any particular direction, the third digit may also be similarly used to indicate the destination(s) or the branch line(s) the suburban service may take.
If the first digit is Four (4)
then the second digit indicates:
Zero (0) to Four (4)
for the Southern Railway (SR)
- 40ZXX service depends upon the third digit 'Z', so explained in the section Third Digit below
- 41XXX from Chennai Beach to Velachery
- 42XXX from Moore Market to Gummidipundi
- 43AXX service depends upon the third digit 'A', so explained in the section Third Digit below
Five (5) to Six (6)
for the Northern Railway (NR)
- 45XXX
- 46XXX
Seven (7)
for the South Central Railway (SCR)
- 47XXX
If the first digit is Five (5) or Six (6) or Seven (7)
Then the second digit refers to the Railway Zone where the train is operated or maintained
Zero (0)
E0XXX for
- all the trains of Konkan Railway (KR)
One (1)
E1XXX for
- some of the trains of Central Railway (CR)
- some of the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
Two (2)
E2XXX for
- some of the trains of Northern Railway (NR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
- some of the trains of Central Railway (CR)
- some of the trains of North Eastern Railway (NER)
- some of the trains of East Central Railway (ECR)
Three (3)
E3XXX for
- all the trains of Eastern Railway (ER)
- some of the trains of East Central Railway (ECR)
Four (4)
E4XXX for
- some of the trains of Northern Railway (NR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
Five (5)
E5XXX for
- all the trains of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR)
- some of the trains of North Eastern Railway (NER)
Six (6)
E6XXX for
- some of the trains of Southern Railway (SR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Seven (7)
E7XXX for
- all the trains of South Central Railway (SCR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Eight (8)
E8XXX for
- all the trains of South Eastern Railway (SER)
- all the trains of South East Central Railway (SECR)
- all the trains of East Coast Railway (ECoR)
Nine (9)
E9XXX for
- all the trains of Western Railway (WR)
- some of the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
If the first digit is Eight (8)
The second digit shall be Two(2)[5]
If the first digit is Nine (9)
Then the second digit refers to the Railway Zone where the train is operated or maintained
Zero (0) to Four (4)
for West Central Railway (WCR)
- 90XXX originating / terminating from Virar
- 91XXX originating / terminating from Vasai Road / Bhayander
- 92XXX originating / terminating from Borivali
- 93XXX originating / terminating from Malad / Goregaon
- 94XXX originating / terminating from Andheri / Bandra / Mumbai Central / CSTM
Five (5) to (9)
- 95XXX for fast trains
- 96XXX for slow trains travelling beyond Kalyan
- 97XXX for slow trains to the Harbour line
- 98XXX for slow trains to the trans-Harbour line
- 99XXX for slow trains to the South Kalyan
Third Digit
If the first digit is zero (0) or One (1) or Two (2)
The second digit is two (2)
then the third digit refers to the Railway Zone where the rake is maintained [exception for Zero (0)]
Zero (0)
Y20XX for Shatabdi Express and Jan Shatabdi Express of all zones.
One (1)
Y21XX for
- all the trains of Central Railway (CR)
- some of the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
Two (2)
Y22XX for
- some of the trains of Northern Railway (NR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
- some of the trains of Southern Railway (SR)
Three (3)
Y23XX for
- all the trains of Eastern Railway (ER)
- all the trains of East Central Railway (ECR)
Four (4)
Y24XX for
- some of the trains of Northern Railway (NR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
Five (5)
Y25XX for
- all the trains of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR)
- all the trains of North Eastern Railway (NER)
Six (6)
Y26XX for
- some of the trains of Southern Railway (SR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Seven (7)
Y27XX for
- all the trains of South Central Railway (SCR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Eight (8)
Y28XX for
- all the trains of South Eastern Railway (SER)
- all the trains of South East Central Railway (SECR)
- all the trains of East Coast Railway (ECoR)
Nine (9)
Y29XX for
- all the trains of Western Railway (WR)
- some of the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
If the second digit is other than two (2)
then the second and the third digits jointly gives the information of the Railway Division where the train is operated / maintained. Already mentioned that the second digit refers to the Railway Zone and it is explained above. But in this section also the second digit should mention to avoid confusion.[6]
- 01 is for Karwar
- 10 is for Mumbai CR / Pune
- 11 is for Jhansi / Pune
- 12 is for Bhopal
- 13 is for Mumbai CR / Kolhapur
- 14 is for Solapur / Jabalpur
- 16 is for Bhopal
- 30 is for Howrah
- 31 is for Sealdah
- 32 is for Danapur
- 33 is for Dhanbad
- 34 is for Malda Town
- 35 is for Asansol
- 40 is for Delhi
- 41 is for Allahabad
- 42 is for Lucknow NER
- 43 is for Moradabad
- 45 is for Ambala
- 46 is for Firozpur
- 47 is for Bikaner
- 48 is for Jodhpur
- 50 is for Lucknow NER
- 51 is for Varanasi
- 52 is for Sonpur / Samastipur'
- 53 is for Izzatnagar / Lucknow NER
- 54 is for Varanasi
- 55 is for Samastipur
- 56 is for Lumding
- 57 is for Katihar / Alipurduar
- 58 is for Lumding / Alipurduar
- 59 is for Tinsukia
- 60 is for Chennai
- 61 is for Chennai Egmore
- 62 is for Mysore
- 63 is for Thiruvananthapuram
- 65 is for Bangalore
- 66 is for Palakkad / Salem
- 67 is for Madurai
- 68 is for Tiruchirappalli
- 70 is for Secunderabad
- 72 is for Vijayawada
- 73 is for Hubli
- 74 is for Guntakal
- 75 is for Hyderabad
- 76 is for Kacheguda
- 77 is for Guntakal
- 78 is for Hubli
- 80 is for Kharagpur
- 81 is for Chakradharpur
- 82 is for Bilaspur
- 83 is for Sambalpur
- 84 is for Khurda Road
- 85 is for Waltair
- 86 is for Adra / Ranchi
- 90 is for Mumbai WR
- 91 is for Vadodara
- 92 is for Bhavnagar
- 93 is for Ratlam
- 94 is for Kota
- 95 is for Rajkot
- 96 is for Ajmer
- 97 is for Jaipur
- 98 is for Bhavnagar
- 99 is for Rajkot
If the first digit is Four (4)
If the second digit is Zero (0)
then the third digit indicates the train service between
- 400XX Chennai Beach and Tambaram
- 401XX Chennai Beach and Tambaram
- 403XX Chennai Beach and Tambaram
- 404XX Chennai Beach and Tambaram
- 405XX Chengalpattu and Tambaram
- 406XX Chengalpattu and Tambaram
- 407XX Chengalpattu and Tirumalpur
- 408XX Chengalpattu and Kanchipuram
If the second digit is Three (3)
then the third digit indicates the train service between
- 430XX Chennai Central and Avadi
- 431XX Chennai Central and Pattabiram
- 432XX Chennai Central and Thiruvalluvar
- 434XX Chennai Central and Arakkonam
- 435XX Chennai Central and Thiruttani
- 436XX Chennai Beach and Avadi
- 438XX Chennai Beach and Arakkonam
If the second digit is Five (5) or Six (6)
then the third digit indicates the direction of travel
- 4N0XX DUK section
- 4N1XX Delhi Shahdara – Shamali section
- 4N2XX Ghaziabad – Meerut Ciyt section
- 4N5XX Ghaziabad – Hapur section / Aligarh direction
- 4N6XX Ghaziabad – Hapur section / Aligarh direction
- 4N7XX Shakur Basti – Rohtak section
- 4N8XX The Ring Railway
If the first digit is Five (5) or Six (6) or Seven (7)
then the second and the third digits jointly gives the information of the Railway Division where the train is operated / maintained. Already mentioned that the second digit refers to the Railway Zone and it is explained in the above section Second digit. But in this section also the second digit should mention to avoid confusion.
- 01 is for Ratnagiri
- 10 is for Mumbai CR / Pune
- 11 is for Jhansi / Pune
- 12 is for Bhopal
- 13 is for Mumbai CR / Kolhapur
- 14 is for Solapur / Jabalpur
- 16 is for Bhopal
- 20 is for Jaipur / Ajmer
- 21 is for Mumbai CR / Jhansi
- 22 is for Lucknow NER / Izzatnagar
- 23 is for Samastipur
- 24 is for Ambala
- 25 is for Samastipur
- 30 is for Howrah
- 31 is for Sealdah
- 32 is for Danapur
- 33 is for Dhanbad
- 34 is for Malda Town
- 35 is for Asansol
- 40 is for Delhi
- 41 is for Allahabad
- 42 is for Lucknow NER
- 43 is for Moradabad
- 45 is for Ambala
- 46 is for Firozpur
- 47 is for Bikaner
- 48 is for Jodhpur
- 50 is for Lucknow NER
- 51 is for Varanasi
- 52 is for Sonpur / Samastipur
- 53 is for Izzatnagar / Lucknow NER
- 54 is for Varanasi
- 55 is for Samastipur
- 56 is for Lumding
- 57 is for Katihar / Alipurduar
- 58 is for Lumding / Alipurduar
- 59 is for Tinsukia
- 60 is for Chennai
- 61 is for Chennai Egmore
- 62 is for Mysore
- 63 is for Thiruvananthapuram
- 65 is for Bangalore
- 66 is for Palakkad / Salem
- 67 is for Madurai
- 68 is for Tiruchirappalli
- 70 is for Secunderabad
- 72 is for Vijayawada
- 73 is for Hubli
- 74 is for Guntakal
- 75 is for Hyderabad
- 76 is for Kacheguda
- 77 is for Guntakal
- 78 is for Hubli
- 80 is for Kharagpur
- 81 is for Chakradharpur
- 82 is for Bilaspur
- 83 is for Sambalpur
- 84 is for Khurda Road
- 85 is for Waltair
- 86 is for Adra / Ranchi
- 90 is for Mumbai WR
- 91 is for Vadodara
- 92 is for Bhavnagar
- 93 is for Ratlam
- 94 is for Kota
- 95 is for Rajkot
- 96 is for Ajmer
- 97 is for Jaipur
- 98 is for Bhavnagar
- 99 is for Rajkot
If the first digit is Eight (8)
Then the third digit refers to the Railway Zone where the train is operated or maintained[5]
One (1)
821XX for
- all the trains of Central Railway (CR)
- all the trains of West Central Railway (WCR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- all the trains of Konkan Railway (KR)
Two (2)
822XX for Not to be utilized unless specifically permitted by Railway Board.
Three (3)
823XX for
- all the trains of Eastern Railway (ER)
- some of the trains of East Central Railway (ECR)
Four (4)
824XX for
- all the trains of Northern Railway (NR)
- some of the trains of North Central Railway (NCR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
Five (5)
825XX for
- all the trains of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR)
- all the trains of North Eastern Railway (NER)
- some of the trains of East Central Railway (ECR)
Six (6)
826XX for
- all the trains of Southern Railway (SR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Seven (7)
827XXX for
- all the trains of South Central Railway (SCR)
- some of the trains of South Western Railway (SWR)
Eight (8)
828XX for
- all the trains of South Eastern Railway (SER)
- all the trains of South East Central Railway (SECR)
- all the trains of East Coast Railway (ECoR)
Nine (9)
829XX for
- all the trains of Western Railway (WR)
- some of the trains of North Western Railway (NWR)
Fourth and Fifth digit
Random numbers for all types of trains which makes the 5-digit train number as unique . But for Delhi Suburban Railway train with a number 4NXPX, the fourth digit P indicates the following
- 0 to 2 for a MEMU
- 3 to 5 for an EMU
- 6 and 7 for a conventional passenger coaching stock
- 8 for a DEMU
- 9 for other types of stock
Abbreviations used in the place of train number
For e.g. Y1XXX, 5XXXX, Y2XXX, 0XXXX
- X – A random number between 0 and 9 ('X' may or may not be a same number which jointly forms a 5 digit number)
- Y – 0 or 1 or 2
- N – 5 or 6
- E – 5 or 6 or 7
References
- ↑ "Government Of India Circular" (PDF). 15 November 2010 – via Railway Board.
- ↑ "Railways replace 4-digit numbering system with 5-digit". 12 December 2010 – via The Times Of India.
- ↑ "Ministry of Railways". 18 November 2010 – via Press Information Bureau.
- ↑ "NTES".
- 1 2 3 "Suvidha train numbering scheme" (PDF). 10 June 2016 – via Ministry of Railways.
- ↑ "IRFCA".