New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday virtually flagged off India’s nineteenth and the Northeast’s first Vande Bharat Express – the semi-high speed train will run from Assam capital Guwahati to West Bengal’s New Jalpaiguri six days a week, except Tuesdays.
It will cover the 411-kilometre distance in 5 hours and 30 minutes – significantly reducing the present journey time.
Modi said at the event: “Three works related to the connectivity of Northeast are going on. The Northeast has got its first ‘Made in India’ Vande Bharat. This is the third Vande Bharat connecting West Bengal and the electrification work on about 425 km of track in Assam and Meghalaya has been completed.”
He said the last nine years of the BJP’s rule “have seen unprecedented achievements for India, of the building of a new India”. “After coming to power, our government gave the highest priority to the welfare of the poor. Infrastructure is for all, equally, without discrimination. That’s why this infrastructure construction is also true social justice in a way, true secularism,” the Prime Minister said.
#WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually flags off the inaugural run of Northeast's first Vande Bharat Express train in Assam. The northeast-bound Vande Bharat will run between New Jalpaiguri Station in West Bengal and Guwahati in Assam. pic.twitter.com/HVIfAEkYCY
— ANI (@ANI) May 29, 2023
He also said the premium train would boost tourism, education, trade and employment opportunities in the Northeast.
At the event, Modi dedicated 182 kilometres of newly-electrified sections and inaugurated a freshly-constructed DEMU/MEMU shed at Assam’s Lumding.
Railways Minister Ashwini Vaibhav and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma were present at the Guwahati station for the launch.
Before the launch, Vaibhav said the central government had successfully transitioned the earlier “Look East” policy to an “Act East” plan.
“Northeast has been given priority in Vande Bharat’s rollout programme. This will augment tourism, facilitate commercial interests, and Guwahati station will be made world-class like those in Japan. It will be a highrise, top building with modern amenities,” he said.
The Vande Bharat trains are made by Chennai-based Integral Coach Factory (ICF), and have a superior aerodynamic design, highest operational speeds, aesthetic interiors, and state-of-the-art safety features which imbibe the latest rail technology.
The approximate cost of each train set is around Rs 110 crore.
The trains run as a self-propelled, semi-high speed set, equipped with fully-suspended traction motors for a 160 kmph operational speed. The aerodynamic design on both ends significantly reduces air drag. It has eight coach chair car configurations, and can carry 530 passengers.
The executive chair cars have a seating capacity of 52 each, while normal chair cars seat 78 each and the driving trailer 44 each.
The trains are also equipped with “KAVACH”, the indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System with optimum reliability.
The Prime Minister said: “Before 2014, the Railway’s budget for Northeast was Rs 2,500 crore. Now, it is more Rs 10.000 crore, which is four-times the growth. All parts of the Northeast will soon be connected via the broad-gauge network. Rs 1 lakh crore is being spent on that.”
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