Aurangabad, Nov 3:
Tourist season has begun, but the industry is yet to gear up. The tourism service providers are missing the chugging sound of luxury train Deccan Odyssey at the local railway station, this year.
The absence of Deccan Odyssey has affected the business of local transporters, guides, and tourism service providers. The art and handicraft shops outside the monuments are also eagerly waiting for train tourists. Monetary transaction of valuing lakhs of rupees had been stalled, due to non-arrival of the train.
The ambitious train provides five-star facilities onboard to international and domestic tourists is a Palace on Wheels. Every year, the train arrives in September. The train records 22 trips to Aurangabad in a year. The tourists onboard visits to local heritage sites Ellora Caves, Bibi ka Maqbara etc. It visits tourist places of Mumbai, Aurangabad, Nagpur and other states. The train is most sought by European, American, Japanese and tourists of other countries. However, due to Covid-19 pandemic situation, it is unpredictable when the train service resumes.
The president of Aurangabad Tourism Development Foundation (ATDF) Jaswant Singh said, " The luxury train provides job opportunities to many locals. However, many of them sustained huge financial losses. The train, however, could not come due to Covid-19 situation. Presently, there is a lockdown in European countries. Hence it is impossible to predict when the train service will resume."