Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to inaugurate nine Vande Bharat trains today at 12:30 pm via video conferencing. These 9 trains will connect religious and tourist destinations across 11 states which includes Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, West Bengal, Kerala, Odisha, Jharkhand and Gujarat.
According to press release by PMO, the new trains will be flagged off are Udaipur – Jaipur Vande Bharat Express, Tirunelveli-Madurai- Chennai Vande Bharat Express, Hyderabad –Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express, Vijayawada – Chennai (via Renigunta) Vande Bharat Express, Patna – Howrah Vande Bharat Express, Kasaragod – Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express, Rourkela – Bhubaneswar – Puri Vande Bharat Express, Ranchi – Howrah Vande Bharat Express and
Jamnagar-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express.
These Vande Bharat trains will be the fastest trains along the routes of their operation and will help save considerable time for the passengers.
As compared to the current fastest train along the route, Rourkela- Bhubaneswar – Puri Vande Bharat Express and Kasaragod – Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express will be faster by about 3 hours; Hyderabad – Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express by more than 2.5 hours; Tirunelveli-Madurai- Chennai Vande Bharat Express by more than 2 hours; Ranchi – Howrah Vande Bharat Express, Patna – Howrah Vande Bharat Express and Jamnagar-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express by about 1 hour; and Udaipur – Jaipur Vande Bharat Express by about half an hour.
“In line with the Prime Minister’s vision to improve connectivity of important religious places across the country, Rourkela- Bhubaneswar – Puri Vande Bharat Express and Tirunelveli-Madurai- Chennai Vande Bharat Express will connect important religious towns of Puri and Madurai. Also, the Vijayawada – Chennai Vande Bharat Express will operate via the Renigunta route and will provide connectivity to the Tirupati Pilgrimage Centre,” the PMO statement added.