Gandhinagar, June 20. The Royal Orient used to ply from Delhi and enter Gujarat through Rajasthan. It has stopped operating for the last four years after the metre gauge track in Saurashtra/Kutch was converted into a broad gauge. The train largely catered to the foreign and domestic tourists along the Delhi-Jaipur-Udaipur-Ahmedabad-Saurashtra circuit when it was operational 
Foreign and domestic tourists visiting Gujarat may again enjoy a ride on the Royal Orient what with the Centre seriously considering a proposal by the state Government to revive the train project. 

Besides, a high-level delegation led by Singapore Minister of State (Foreign Affairs) Balaji Sadasivan has also evinced a keen interest in the project. 

The Royal Orient used to ply from Delhi and enter Gujarat through Rajasthan. It has stopped operating for the last four years after the metre gauge track in Saurashtra/Kutch was converted into a broad gauge. The train heavily catered to tourists along the Delhi-Jaipur-Udaipur-Ahmedabad-Saurashtra circuit when it was operational. 

A senior official of the state Tourism Department said they have sent a detailed proposal to the Centre for the revival of the Royal Orient train, adding that the Gujarat government proposes to reintroduce this service on the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model. "The estimated project cost is a little over Rs 30 crore. The Centre is positively considering our proposal," the official said. 

He told the paper that earlier Indian Railways and the state government shared the project cost. But now, under the new Railway policy, the state will have to shoulder 100 per cent of the cost. He, however, said that Gujarat was entitled to receive Rs 8 crore from the Centre under its Large Revenue Generating Project scheme. This amount could be utilised when the Royal Orient project is revived and implemented on the PPP model, the official said. 

"The broad gauge conversion right from Ahmedabad to Somnath in Junagadh district has already been done, and the Royal Orient could start running if the Centre approves Gujarat's proposal. The government proposes to get the train bogies redesigned, keeping in mind the broad gauge conversion. Once in operation, the train will facilitate the prospective tourists to visit places in Gujarat, including the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, the world famous Gir Sanctuary, Dwarka and Somnath," the official said. 

"We have also plans to extend Royal Orient, when reintroduced, up to Kutch which is known for its eco-tourism, white desert, flamingo city and the ancient Harappan site at Dholavira," he added. 

Gujarat Tourism Minister Jay Narayan Vyas had referred to the Royal Orient project while providing an overall view of the tourism potential in the state during his meeting with the visiting Singaporean delegation on Friday. Vyas suggested that in view of a large number of tourists from Gujarat visiting Singapore, a joint marketing strategy between the two could be chalked out for the development of this sector. 

To this, Singapore Minister of State Balaji Sivdasan said his country was interested in this sphere, particularly in the development of religious tourism and also in the proposed Royal Orient project. 

Other members of the Singapore delegation who attended the meeting were Chairman of the Singapore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) Vijay Iyengar, Singapore's Consul General Hock Seng and the regional director of the Singapore Tourism Board. 

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