A train full of commuters travelling from Tirupati to Varnasi went 980 km in the wrong direction before passengers realized what was happening. It was only when the trained pulled into Warangal, a central Indian city on an entirely different route, that they realized something was wrong. The error in route was caused due to incorrect entry of destination code, sending the train five hours awayfrom its destination. “Though the journey was agonising, we thank our stars that the train did not run into another train,”' an angry passenger said.

Some of the staff, who were apparently sleeping on that leg of the journey, said that they did not catch the mistake since it was a special service to Varnasi, and they were unfamiliar with the route. At Warangal station, the superintendent took corrective measures, bringing the train back to where it should have been for its onward journey to Varanasi.