Palace-on-Wheels: Bengal Explores Luxury Heritage Rail Circuit

West Bengal is exploring an ambitious luxury heritage train connecting some of eastern India’s most celebrated tourism destinations, with the state Tourism Department in consultation with the Railway Ministry over a proposed ‘Palace-on-Wheels’ for the East.

The proposed train, modelled broadly on India’s iconic luxury heritage service that takes visitors through the royal landscapes of Rajasthan and Agra, could link major tourism and pilgrimage destinations across West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha and Assam, among other eastern states.

“The Palace-on-Wheels, much in the fashion of India’s premier luxury heritage train, will touch famous tourist destinations of Bihar, Odisha, Assam and West Bengal among others,” state Tourism Minister Dr Shankar Ghosh told the Eastern News Network (ENN) here on Wednesday.

Speaking on the sidelines of a milestone event marking the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Government of West Bengal, Ghosh said the proposal was still at a nascent stage and would require detailed consultations with all stakeholders before taking shape.

“Several issues, including a revenue-sharing model and establishing tourist circuit connectivity, are involved. There is no hurry. We will shortly be discussing the threads and get back to you,” he said.

The tentative circuit could bring together a remarkable combination of religious, historical and cultural destinations, including Kamakhya Temple in Assam; Gaya, Bodhgaya and Nalanda in Bihar; Jagannath Dham at Puri in Odisha; and Dakshineswar and Tarakeswar in West Bengal. Other major tourist destinations are also expected to be considered as potential halts.

River Tourism Push

The proposed luxury train is part of a wider tourism expansion strategy being planned by the state.

Ghosh said the government had earmarked Rs 56 crore for procuring four state-of-the-art vessels from Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), a central public sector undertaking, to promote river tourism in West Bengal.

“We have already bought two, while the rest will be handed over next year,” he said.

The department is also preparing a digital push to make Kolkata and the state’s tourism offerings easier to navigate. A ‘Kolkata Key’, in the form of a QR code, is expected to be incorporated into the Tourism Department’s new website in a compact, easily accessible format.

In addition, each of the state’s 23 districts will have a dedicated QR code. Once scanned, it will provide a digital map highlighting important tourist attractions within the district.

For the overseas Indian community, the department is planning a three-day ‘Bharatiya Probashi Divas’, also proposed to be promoted as ‘Return to Roots’, from January 7, 2027, with the objective of drawing NRIs back to Bengal and encouraging heritage and cultural tourism.

ASI–Bengal MoU

Meanwhile, the MoU signed between the ASI and the West Bengal Tourism Department envisages the development of visitor amenities, tourism infrastructure and improved management at 135 ASI-protected monuments of national importance spread across Bankura, Murshidabad, Cooch Behar, Hooghly, Kolkata and East and West Midnapore.

Under the agreement, the state government will prepare project proposals and development plans, while the ASI will provide oversight to ensure that all interventions conform to the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958, and preserve the heritage character of the monuments.

The MoU also provides for revenue generation through authorised tourism and visitor-related activities, with a 70:30 profit-sharing arrangement between the state government and the ASI.

A joint management committee comprising representatives of the state government and the ASI will oversee the planning, development, maintenance and management of the selected heritage sites. Light-and-Sound shows are also proposed at these locations as part of efforts to enhance their tourism appeal.

Both ASI Director General Dr Yaduber Singh Rawat and Ghosh expressed the view that the agreement would provide a significant impetus to tourism while creating employment opportunities and generating additional revenue.

Taken together, the proposed luxury rail circuit, river-tourism initiative, digital district mapping and the ASI partnership point towards an attempt to reposition West Bengal not merely as a destination in itself, but as a gateway to an integrated eastern Indian tourism circuit, where pilgrimage, heritage, history and leisure travel can converge.