IRCTC or Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation has announced a 10 per cent promotional discount to citizens on its Buddhist Circuit Tourist Train.

Indian Railways offers several tourism packages such as the Buddhist Circuit, which covers destinations including Bodhgaya (Bihar), Nalanda (Bihar), Rajgir (Bihar), Varanasi (UP), Lumbini (Nepal) and Sarvasti (UP), its ticketing arm IRCTC said on microblogging site Twitter.

IRCTC Tourism, the travel and tourism arm of IRCTC, offers an seven-night and eight-day tour - called Buddhist Circuit Tourist Train - from Delhi, according to its website - irctctourism.com.1.

Mode: While most of the journey is covered by train comprising AC First Class and AC Two-Tier seat options, parts of the tour are covered by road, according to the IRCTC tourism website.2.

Itinerary: The Buddhist Circuit Tourist Train tour comprises Delhi on Day 1, Bodhgaya on Day 2, Nalanda and Rajgir on Day 3, Varanasi and Sarnath on Day 4, Kushinagar and Lumbini on Day 5 and 6, Sarvasti on Day 7 and Agra on Day 8, according to the IRCTC website.3.

Cost: Passengers can board the tour either on a full-tour basis or a per-night basis.

Different charges have been set for both the modes.

In rupee terms, the tour costs Rs 10,725 per guest per day, and Rs 75,075 per guest for the full tour, according to IRCTC. Package rates for 2018-19 and 2019-20Class of train journeyCapacityPer nightFull tour (7 nights)In US dollarIn rupeeIn US dollarIn rupeeAC First Class72 Guests16510725115575075AC Two-Tier92 Guests135877594551425(Source: IRCTC)4.

Discount: The 10 per cent discount can be availed by Indian nationals including NRIs, PIOs and OCIs, IRCTC said on Twitter.5.

Travel dates: The Buddhist Circuit tour starts on several occasions in September through March. Departure dates for 2018-19 and 2019-20Month/year201820192020    September2921 October13, 275, 19 November10, 242, 16, 30 December8, 2214, 28 January 5, 1911, 25February 2, 168, 22March 2, 2314, 28(Source: IRCTC)IRCTC or Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation, under the Ministry of Railways, was established on August 1, 2001 with the objective of professionalizing catering services and promoting domestic and international tourism.

There are six Zonal Offices and Ten regional offices all over the Country for monitoring operations at ground level, according to the IRCTC website.