DNA Verified: Did India's most delayed train take 3 years to reach destination? Know truth here

There has been a lot of talk about a freight train journey that has faced the longest delay in the history of Indian Railways. As per a few reports, the goods wagon carrying 1,316 bags of Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) fertilizer took an astonishing 3 years, 8 months, and 7 days to travel from Visakhapatnam to Basti in Uttar Pradesh — a journey that typically takes just over 42 hours. The train, which departed on November 10, 2014, finally rolled into Basti on July 25, 2018, leaving railway officials and staff baffled. However this information is not true, recently a PIB tweet stated that, "No goods train in Indian Railways has ever taken such time to reach its destination." 

Several news reports and social media posts claim that a goods train took over three years to reach its destination.#PIBFactCheck

This claim is #Misleading

No goods train in Indian Railways has ever taken such time to reach its destination. pic.twitter.com/nnQYlaglva

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) December 10, 2024

In the false reports it was mentioned that, the goods, worth ₹14 lakhs, were booked by Ramchandra Gupta, a businessman from Basti, through Indian Potash Limited (IPL). Initially scheduled for a routine delivery, the wagon inexplicably failed to arrive on time. Alarmed by the delay, Gupta lodged multiple complaints with railway authorities, yet no resolution was offered. It was later discovered that the wagon had essentially “gone missing” while en route, though no official explanation has been provided for how or why this occurred.

Sanjay Yadav, Chief Public Relations Officer of the North Eastern Railway zone, shed some light on the situation, stating, "Sometimes, when some wagon or bogie becomes sick (unfit to ferry), it is sent to the yard, and it seems that the same happened in this case too." However, this vague clarification offered little insight into the extraordinary delay.

When the long-lost train finally reached its destination, the fertilizers were rendered completely unusable, leaving Gupta at a significant financial loss. Despite an investigation, the mystery of the missing train and its years-long delay remains unresolved. This bizarre incident has now earned its place in Indian Railways’ records as the most delayed journey in its history, highlighting systemic lapses in freight operations and communication.