मैं अकेला ही चला था जानिब-ए-मंज़िल मगर लोग साथ आते गए और कारवाँ बनता गया - Purnesh Upadhyay

Based on trip on 23.06.22 from CSMT to Bilaspur :
1. Cleanliness : OBHS present in all coaches and acting on time to time to keep the toilet and pathways clean. Most of the coaches are 20-21 made, so no complaints here. Old, rusty and dirty ECoR rake of Gitanjali is history now.
2. Punctuality : There was no complaint in this department earlier also. All the zones en-route give top priority to this train and no other train comes in it way. Except for some times Adi hwh SF 12833 makes it...
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crawl in absence of clearing ahead. SECR also has some other plans some day.
That day train ran from CSMT to Rajnandgaon bang on time but got delayed by 30 minutes afterwards ( minor delay at Jalgaon and Wardha which it made up before next stoppage)
3. Availability : It has always been a tough task to get seat in this train. Most of the passengers are end to end or de- boarding in SER territories. So chance of clearance of intermediate station travelers under PQWl and rlwl quota is very less.
4. Catering : Though all items present in the pantry, personally didn't find their taste up to the mark. Veg thali not of good quality.
Options available:
Breakfast : Poha, omlette, samosa, kachodi, paneer/chicken pakoda
lunch/dinner : veg thali, egg thali, chicken thali, Mach bhaat, veg/egg biryani (bland spiced rice in practical).
E-catering at Bhusaval and Nagpur are other alternatives available.
Tasted Vada Pav at kalyan and Igatpuri, off which that at kalyan was of good taste. Through out, this train's halt is not more than 5-10 minute at any station en-route which is less for grabbing on station vendors food items.
5. Railfanning: Excellent. Loads of crossings and overtaking's with out being beaten for once. Seeing off Goa Exp at bhusaval is a regular event. Monsoon views of Thal ghat ( kalyan to nasik ) are enticing.
6. Speed: waiting for 130 mps upgradation of durg bilaspur section after which a major TT overhaul is expected. Currently from tata to andul and from nagpur to durg 130 mps sanctioned. Current TT is of 110 mps which still is a decent one for a regular SF Express.
7. Rake standardization : Plans of rake standardization with Mumbai Mail have been shelved for now as 3 new AC 3 Tier economy caches have been added in lieu of 3 sleeper coaches. These bedsheet/linen less new AC 3 Tier economy coaches with less leg space for passengers and some minor modifications ( like roller blinders, modified plastic bottle holders, reading lamp, USB charging point, mobile/magazine holder for each berth and eleven extra seats; have been targeted to upgrade sleeper passengers to AC class, though fare is on marginally higher side.