The name Poorva signifies the eastern part of India, and the train attracts travellers from Bihar, Jharkhand & West Bengal.

With due course of time, the "fully Air Conditioned" was stripped off from its name to accommodate additional Non-AC sleeper Coaches and was subsequently terminated till New Delhi.

Due to its huge demand, Indian Railways introduced a second pair of Poorva Express on 1 August 1971 via Patna.

Not only that, during its peak time it was one of the longest trains with a load of 24 coaches and was used to be hauled by twin WDM-2 engines between Mughalsarai and Chittaranjan.

The train consists of 22 coaches: It is regularly hauled by a Howrah Loco Shed based WAP 7 (HOG) equipped locomotive on its entire journey.