New Delhi: In yet another break from the routine, President A P J Abdul Kalam will now travel by train on May 30 when he inaugurates a railway depot in Harnot, Bihar, which is in the Barh Lok Sabha constituency of Railway Minister Nitish Kumar.

Plans for the rail journey of the President, the first to travel in 27 years, were being chalked out by the Railway Ministry in coordination with President's Secretariat, official sources said.

"The final plan for this journey would be ready in a couple of days as discussions are still on and everything is in the preliminary stage. The options were to take the road route or rail route. But, being a railway function, it was felt that rail journey would give it that touch of originality," the sources said.

The last President to travel by train was N Sanjeeva Reddy in 1977.

During his less than a year in office, Kalam had dispensed with the practice of formal wear at the "At Home" reception at the Rashtrapati Bhavan hosted by the President marking Independence Day celebrations.

He has also been having regular interaction with school children bringing a totally new atmosphere in the Presidential residence, the sources said.

PTI