Director/General Manager, Hemas Travels (Pvt) Ltd, Riza Ahamat after signing the agreement on behalf of his company with Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd (IRCTL) to organise Deluxe Buddhist Pilgrimages to India on rail said, "We felt that there was a void to be filled where hassle free travel with convenience and comfort is concerned and now we have discovered the ideal product to cater to this market."

This is an ideal mode of conveyance, specially for senior citizens who would always like to avoid long and tiring journeys by road, he added.

Although the Mahaparinirvan Express, the Buddhist Circuit Special Train had been operating for the past two years run by the Indian Railways and there are around 20 registered Buddhist Pilgrimage Operators to India in Sri Lanka, hitherto no travel agent had made use of this unique facility Ahamat noted.

"The uniqueness is that you travel most part of the pilgrimage on rail in airconditioned carriages in comfort and it is less tiring," he explained.

The tour will take pilgrims around the key Buddhist sites in India such as Bodhgaya, Nalanda, Rajgir, Varanasi, Saranath, Lumbini, Sravasti, Kushinagar and Agra. The tour will begin and end in New Delhi.

Arun Srivastava, Deputy General Manager, IRCTL said Mahaparinirvan Express proved to be a success and has gained popularity among a large number of Buddhist pilgrims, interested in discovering the history,cultural and archaeological heritage of India.

This is a special train and normal passengers will be not allowed.

All passengers will be provided with Insurance cover he said.

Tours packages will begin in early October and continue till end March.