News Analysis India

Tag: Vande Bharat

  • Airport, Vande Bharat Trains, Railway Station…: PM Modi To Gift Projects Worth Rs 15K Cr To Ayodhya Today |

    New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Ayodhya on Saturday to unveil a series of projects with a cumulative value exceeding Rs 15,000 crore. Commencing at approximately 11:15 AM, the Prime Minister will kick off the proceedings by inaugurating the revamped Ayodhya Railway Station. Subsequently, he will flag off new Amrit Bharat trains and Vande Bharat trains, in addition to dedicating several other pivotal railway projects to the nation.

    Continuing the day’s events, at around 12:15 PM, Prime Minister Modi is slated to inaugurate the newly constructed Ayodhya Airport. Following this, at approximately 1 PM, he will actively participate in a public program. During this session, the Prime Minister will inaugurate, dedicate to the nation, and lay the foundation stone for multiple developmental projects valued at over Rs 15,000 crore in the state.

    These include projects worth about Rs 11,100 crore for the development of Ayodhya and its surrounding areas and projects worth about Rs 4600 crore related to other projects across Uttar Pradesh.

    On Friday, PM Modi, in a post on X, said, “Our government is determined to develop world-class infrastructure, improve connectivity and preserve the rich heritage of Ayodhya, the city of Lord Shri Ram. In this direction, I will inaugurate the newly constructed airport and redeveloped railway station tomorrow. Along with this, I will also get the privilege of inaugurating and laying the foundation stone of many more development projects, which will make the life of my family members in many areas of the country including Ayodhya and UP easier.”

    Prime Minister’s vision is to develop modern world-class infrastructure in Ayodhya, improve connectivity and revamp its civic facilities while also conforming to the rich history and heritage of the city. In the realisation of this vision, a new airport, a new redeveloped railway station, newly redeveloped, widened and beautified roads and other civic infrastructure are being inaugurated in the city. Further, the foundation stones of a number of new projects will be laid that will contribute to the beautification and revamp of civic facilities in and around Ayodhya.

    Ayodhya Airport

    Phase 1 of the state-of-the-art airport is developed at a cost of more than Rs 1450 crore. The airport’s terminal building will have an area of 6500 sqm, equipped to serve about 10 lakh passengers annually. The facade of the Terminal Building depicts the temple architecture of the upcoming Shri Ram Mandir of Ayodhya. The interiors of the terminal building are decorated with local art, paintings and murals depicting the life of Bhagwan Shri Ram. The terminal building of Ayodhya airport is also equipped with various sustainability features, like an insulated roofing system, LED lighting, rainwater harvesting, landscaping with fountains, a water treatment plant, a sewage treatment plant, a solar power plant and many other such features have been provided to meet GRIHA – 5-star ratings. The airport will improve connectivity in the region, leading to a boost in tourism, business activities and employment opportunities.

    Ayodhya Dham Railway Station

    Phase I of the redeveloped Ayodhya Railway Station – known as Ayodhya Dham Junction Railway Station – is developed at a cost of more than Rs 240 crore. The three-storey modern railway station building is equipped with all modern features like lifts, escalators, food plazas, shops for puja needs, cloakrooms, child care rooms, and waiting halls. The station building will be ‘accessible for all’ and an ‘IGBC-certified green station building’.

    Amrit Bharat trains, Vande Bharat trains and other rail projects

    The programme at Ayodhya Dham Junction Railway Station will witness the Prime Minister flagging off a new category of superfast passenger trains in the country – the Amrit Bharat Express. The Amrit Bharat train is an LHB push-pull train with non-air-conditioned coaches. This train has locos at both ends for better acceleration. It provides improved facilities for rail passengers, like beautifully designed seats, better luggage racks, mobile charging points with suitable mobile holders, LED lights, CCTV, and a public information system, among others.

    Prime Minister will also flag off six new Vande Bharat trains. Prime Minister will flag off two new Amrit Bharat trains viz Darbhanga-Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Amrit Bharat Express and Malda Town-Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminus (Bengaluru) Amrit Bharat Express.

    Prime Minister will also flag off six new Vande Bharat Trains. These include Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express; Amritsar-Delhi Vande Bharat Express; Coimbatore-Bangalore Cantt Vande Bharat Express; Mangalore-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express; Jalna-Mumbai Vande Bharat Express and Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Vande Bharat Express.

    Prime Minister will also dedicate to the nation three railway projects worth Rs 2300 crore to strengthen rail infrastructure in the region. The projects include the Rooma Chakeri-Chanderi third line project; Jaunpur-Tulsi Nagar, Akbarpur-Ayodhya, Sohawal-Patranga and Safdarganj-Rasauli sections of the Jaunpur-Ayodhya-Barabanki doubling project; and doubling and electrification project of the Malhaur-Daliganj railway section.

    Improved civic infrastructure in Ayodhya

    To enhance accessibility to the upcoming Shri Ram Mandir, Prime Minister will inaugurate four newly redeveloped, widened and beautified roads in Ayodhya – Rampath, Bhaktipath, Dharampath, and Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Path.

    Prime Minister will also inaugurate and dedicate to the nation a number of projects that will strengthen the civic infrastructure and beautify the public places in and around Ayodhya. These inaugurated projects include Rajarshi Dashrath Autonomous State Medical College; four-lane road connecting Ayodhya-Sultanpur Road-Airport; a four-lane road till Tedhi Bazaar Shri Ram Janmabhoomi via NH-27 bypass Mahobra Bazaar; several beautified roads across the city and the Ayodhya bypass; Jagdishpur-Faizabad section of NH-330A; widening and strengthening of Maholi-Baragaon-Deodhi road and Jasarpur-Bhaupur-Gangaraman-Sureshnagar road; ROB at Badi Bua Railway Crossing on Panchkosi Parikrama Marg; solid waste treatment Plant in village Pikhrauli; and new buildings and classrooms in Dr Brajkishore Homoeopathic College and Hospital, among others.

    Prime Minister will also inaugurate works related to the Mukhyamantri Nagar Srijan Yojana and five parking and commercial facilities.

    The foundation stone of new projects in Ayodhya

    Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone of new projects which will further help in the revamp of civic facilities in Ayodhya while also strengthening the rich cultural heritage of the city. These include conservation and beautification of four historical entrance gates in Ayodhya; new concrete ghats between Guptar Ghat and Rajghat and rehabilitation of pre-built ghats; development and beautification of tourist facilities from Naya Ghat to Laxman Ghat; construction of a visitor gallery for Deepotsav and other fairs at Ram Ki Paidi; strengthening and renovation of pilgrim path from Ram Ki Paidi to Raj Ghat and Raj Ghat to Ram Temple.

    Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone of a greenfield township in Ayodhya being developed at a cost of more than Rs 2180 crore and the Vashishtha Kunj Residential Scheme to be developed at a cost of about Rs 300 crore.

    Prime Minister will also lay the foundation stone of an NH-28 (new NH-27) Lucknow-Ayodhya section; strengthen and modification of NH-28 (new NH-27) existing Ayodhya bypass; establishment of the CIPET centre in Ayodhya, and construction work of the Municipal Corporation Ayodhya and Ayodhya Development Authority office.

    Other projects across Uttar Pradesh

    During the public programme, the Prime Minister will inaugurate and dedicate to the nation other significant projects across Uttar Pradesh. These include the four-lane widening of Gosain Ki Bazar Bypass-Varanasi (Ghaghra Bridge-Varanasi) (NH-233); strengthening and upgradation of Khutar to Lakhimpur section of NH-730; a capacity increase of the LPG plant in Trishundi of Amethi district; Sewage Treatment Plant of 30 MLD in Pankha and 130 MLD in Jajmau, Kanpur; interception and diversion of drains and sewage treatment work in Unnao district; and CETP for Tannery Cluster at Jajmau in Kanpur. 

  • PM Modi flags off Delhi-Dehradun Vande Bharat Express

    By PTI

    DEHRADUN: The world appreciates the way India has strengthened its economy over the past few years despite various challenges, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday while flagging off the Delhi-Dehradun Vande Bharat Express via video conference.

    The prime minister also inaugurated 100 per cent electrification of railway tracks in the state.

    Equipped with state-of-the-art amenities for passengers, the first such train for Uttarakhand reduces the journey time between Dehradun and the national capital to four-and-a-half hours from the six hours and 10 minutes it takes on the Shatabdi Express.

    “Global tourists want to visit India to see the country and understand it. This is a great opportunity for Uttarakhand,” the prime minister said at the launch.

    Addressing the flag-off ceremony, Modi said he just returned from a tri-nation tour and can say that the whole world looks towards India with great hope.

    “The world appreciates the way India has strengthened its economy over the past few years despite various challenges,” he added.

    The prime minister also mentioned various road and rail projects undertaken in Uttarakhand by the BJP’s “double-engine government” to boost connectivity.

    He mentioned the efforts underway to upgrade the facilities for Chardham pilgrims through reconstruction projects in Kedarnath and Badrinath, and those aimed at expanding the health infrastructure across the state.

    In his speech, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami thanked the prime minister for giving yet another facility to the state which will further boost connectivity between the Uttarakhand capital and Delhi.

    DEHRADUN: The world appreciates the way India has strengthened its economy over the past few years despite various challenges, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday while flagging off the Delhi-Dehradun Vande Bharat Express via video conference.

    The prime minister also inaugurated 100 per cent electrification of railway tracks in the state.

    Equipped with state-of-the-art amenities for passengers, the first such train for Uttarakhand reduces the journey time between Dehradun and the national capital to four-and-a-half hours from the six hours and 10 minutes it takes on the Shatabdi Express.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    “Global tourists want to visit India to see the country and understand it. This is a great opportunity for Uttarakhand,” the prime minister said at the launch.

    Addressing the flag-off ceremony, Modi said he just returned from a tri-nation tour and can say that the whole world looks towards India with great hope.

    “The world appreciates the way India has strengthened its economy over the past few years despite various challenges,” he added.

    The prime minister also mentioned various road and rail projects undertaken in Uttarakhand by the BJP’s “double-engine government” to boost connectivity.

    He mentioned the efforts underway to upgrade the facilities for Chardham pilgrims through reconstruction projects in Kedarnath and Badrinath, and those aimed at expanding the health infrastructure across the state.

    In his speech, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami thanked the prime minister for giving yet another facility to the state which will further boost connectivity between the Uttarakhand capital and Delhi.

  • Vande Bharat may connect most pilgrimage circuits by August 15

    Express News Service

    CHENNAI:  The Ministry of Railways is working on running 75-78 Vande Bharat trains, including the 13 rolled out already, connecting popular pilgrimage and tourist circuits in the country by August 15 this year.

    “If everything goes in a planned way, most tourists and pilgrimage places will be reachable by Vande Bharat trains by August 15, 2023,” said a railway official, adding both the PM and railway minister are serious about this target.  This train will generate huge revenues if India’s almost all famous pilgrimage places of all religions are connected through the service of this train, he added.

    According to sources, South India is likely to get more Vande Bharat trains before 2024 linking pilgrimage, commercial and tourist places with state capitals. At present, 13 Vande Bharat trains are operating on different routes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently flagged off the Vande Bharat train between Secunderable-Tirupati.

    A senior railway official, speaking to this newspaper in Chennai, said the Vande Bharat trains are running with over 100 per cent occupancy since the day its first service was started between New Delhi and Varanasi by the PM. In the next few days, Mahakal Ujjain temple and Ajmer Sharif shrine are set to be reachable by the Vande Bharat train, he said.

    “The New Delhi-Varanasi Vande Bharat train has registered record earnings of more than Rs 92.29 crore, maintaining 100 per cent occupancy on the completion of a year of its services from 2019 to 2020,” an official said. The government has announced to roll out 400 Vande Bharat trains in the next few years to make an estimate earnings of over Rs 40,000 crores. Emboldened by earnings, the railway is also working to roll out the sleeper version of Vande Bharat trains by 2024-25 as works on it in progress.

    According to a conservative estimate, Vande Bharat train services are benefiting more than 15 lakh people every month, including students, traders and professionals who mostly now prefer to travel by this train. The prominent routes on which the services of Vande Bharat are available now include the New Delhi -Varanasi, Nagpur -Bilaspur, Chennai Coimbatore, Secunderabad -Tirupati, Mumbai Gandhinagar and How-New Jalpaiguri, among others.

    CHENNAI:  The Ministry of Railways is working on running 75-78 Vande Bharat trains, including the 13 rolled out already, connecting popular pilgrimage and tourist circuits in the country by August 15 this year.

    “If everything goes in a planned way, most tourists and pilgrimage places will be reachable by Vande Bharat trains by August 15, 2023,” said a railway official, adding both the PM and railway minister are serious about this target.  This train will generate huge revenues if India’s almost all famous pilgrimage places of all religions are connected through the service of this train, he added.

    According to sources, South India is likely to get more Vande Bharat trains before 2024 linking pilgrimage, commercial and tourist places with state capitals. At present, 13 Vande Bharat trains are operating on different routes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently flagged off the Vande Bharat train between Secunderable-Tirupati.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    A senior railway official, speaking to this newspaper in Chennai, said the Vande Bharat trains are running with over 100 per cent occupancy since the day its first service was started between New Delhi and Varanasi by the PM. In the next few days, Mahakal Ujjain temple and Ajmer Sharif shrine are set to be reachable by the Vande Bharat train, he said.

    “The New Delhi-Varanasi Vande Bharat train has registered record earnings of more than Rs 92.29 crore, maintaining 100 per cent occupancy on the completion of a year of its services from 2019 to 2020,” an official said. The government has announced to roll out 400 Vande Bharat trains in the next few years to make an estimate earnings of over Rs 40,000 crores. Emboldened by earnings, the railway is also working to roll out the sleeper version of Vande Bharat trains by 2024-25 as works on it in progress.

    According to a conservative estimate, Vande Bharat train services are benefiting more than 15 lakh people every month, including students, traders and professionals who mostly now prefer to travel by this train. The prominent routes on which the services of Vande Bharat are available now include the New Delhi -Varanasi, Nagpur -Bilaspur, Chennai Coimbatore, Secunderabad -Tirupati, Mumbai Gandhinagar and How-New Jalpaiguri, among others.

  • PM Modi flags off fourth Vande Bharat Express train, to cover Una-Delhi

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Giving a major boost to religious tourism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday flagged off the country’s fourth rake of the newly rolled out upgraded version of the Vande Bharat train from Una railway station in Himachal Pradesh. The train will cover Una-New Delhi on its inaugural run.

    The PM was accompanied by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The PM later went inside one of the coaches and inspected the interior design and facilities. The 16-coach train is expected to start its regular commercial running from October 19 and will cover New Delhi to Himachal Pradesh via Ambala and Chandigarh in 5.30 hours.

    “In each coach of Vande Bharat train, four emergency windows, CCTV cameras, air-purifier, automatic gates and fire alarm system have been installed”, said the railways.  It also added that the train will start from New Delhi at 5.30 am on all days except Wednesday. 

    ALSO READ | Menu onboard new Vande Bharat train is all about healthy options and regional delicacies

    The railways are working on running 75 Vande Bharat trains by August 15 in 2023 as per the desire of PM Narendra Modi. The Chennai-based ICF is currently producing the rakes of the Vande Bharat Express. 

    Recently, PM Modi flagged off the third Vande Bharat train from Gandhinagar, Gujarat on September 30 to run between Gandhinagar and Mumbai .

    The first Vande Bharat train runs between New Delhi and Varanasi and the second between New Delhi and Katra in Jammu and Kashmir. They were flagged off by the PM in 2019.

    NEW DELHI: Giving a major boost to religious tourism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday flagged off the country’s fourth rake of the newly rolled out upgraded version of the Vande Bharat train from Una railway station in Himachal Pradesh. The train will cover Una-New Delhi on its inaugural run.

    The PM was accompanied by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The PM later went inside one of the coaches and inspected the interior design and facilities. The 16-coach train is expected to start its regular commercial running from October 19 and will cover New Delhi to Himachal Pradesh via Ambala and Chandigarh in 5.30 hours.

    “In each coach of Vande Bharat train, four emergency windows, CCTV cameras, air-purifier, automatic gates and fire alarm system have been installed”, said the railways.  It also added that the train will start from New Delhi at 5.30 am on all days except Wednesday. 

    ALSO READ | Menu onboard new Vande Bharat train is all about healthy options and regional delicacies

    The railways are working on running 75 Vande Bharat trains by August 15 in 2023 as per the desire of PM Narendra Modi. The Chennai-based ICF is currently producing the rakes of the Vande Bharat Express. 

    Recently, PM Modi flagged off the third Vande Bharat train from Gandhinagar, Gujarat on September 30 to run between Gandhinagar and Mumbai .

    The first Vande Bharat train runs between New Delhi and Varanasi and the second between New Delhi and Katra in Jammu and Kashmir. They were flagged off by the PM in 2019.

  • Shtabadi, Vande Bharat trains soon to have Radio Entertainment Services on Board

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: In a first of its kind initiative, the Delhi division of Northern Railway (NR) is going to introduce a radio entertainment service in India’s almost all classical and other melodious music to passengers travelling in the Shatabadi and the Vande Bharat express trains to 12 different cities.

    This radio entertainment service will continue providing musical entertainment to passengers throughout their journey in 10 Shatabdi and 2 Vande Bharat express trains.

    Confirming this to this newspaper, Deepak Kumar-chief spokesperson of Northern Railway, said that the passengers travelling by the Shatabdi and the Vande Bharat express trains to Delhi, Lucknow, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Amritsar, Chandigarh, Ajmer, Deharadun, Kanpur, Varanasi, Katra and Kathgodam, will enjoy this musical entertainment services throughout their journey.

    Kumar further added that the NR has entered into an agreement to provide radio service in all Shatabdi and Vande Bharat trains of the Delhi division. “ Music is the best combination with travel and enhances the possibilities of good mood in travels the best companion . The  Northern Railway will usher in a new kind of entertainment and enjoyment through already installed Passenger Announcement System(PAS)”, he said.

    Spelling out the primary objective of first of its kind initiative, Kumar said that the railways want to ensure  a soothing and pleasant travel experience to every passenger travelling by the  Vande Bharat and Shatabdi trains He said that the ratio of entertainment  and railway information along with  commercialadvertisement will be of  50 minutes.

    “With the start of this initiative, the concerned railway will get annual revenue of Rs 43.20 lakh. The entire initiative to provide entertainment in trains through radio services has been made under the guidance of Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) of Delhi division Dimpy Garg and senior commercial manager Praveen Kumar”, he said.

  • Railways follows up on PM’s I-day announcement, floats tender for 58 Vande Bharat rakes

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The railways has floated a tender for 58 rakes of Vande Bharat Express trains, following up on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day announcement that 75 such trains will be launched in 75 weeks to connect different parts of the country.

    Currently, only two such Shatabdi-type semi-high speed trains are in operation.

    These coaches will be manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory, Chennai, Modern Coach Factory, Rae Bareilly and Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala.

    The closing date for the tender is October 20.

    A pre-bid meeting will be held on September 21 with the cut-off date for submission of pre-bid queries being September 14.

    The tender floated on August 28 has invited bids for the design, development, manufacturing, integration and testing of traction propulsion electrics for the 58 rakes of Vande Bharat trains.

    In his speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15, Modi had said that in the 75 weeks of “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ being celebrated to mark the journey of 75 years of Independence, the railways will launch 75 Vande Bharat trains to connect far-flung areas.”

  • New Vande Bharat train sets to come with features to aid emergency evacuation

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI; The next set of Vande Bharat trains will come with new facilities, including centralised coach monitoring systems and features specially designed for emergency evacuation, officials said.

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi this August 15 had announced that 75 Vande Bharat Express trains will connect every corner of the country in 75 weeks of the Amrit Mahotsav of Independence.

    These will be in addition to the Indian Railways two existing Vande Bharat Express trains.

    The first was launched on the Varanasi-Delhi route and the second on the Katra-Delhi route.

    The Shatabdi-type semi-high speed trains already have amenities like onboard infotainment, GPS-based passenger information system, CCTV cameras, automatic sliding doors with retractable coach footsteps and zero discharge vacuum-based bio-toilets.

    The new improved features on these Vande Bharat trains will include four emergency windows for easy evacuation of passengers in case of emergencies, the officials said.

    Four disaster lights will also be provided in each coach to be used in the event of failure of all other lights in a disaster situation, they said.

    The number of emergency push buttons will also be increased from the present two to four.

    The officials said that a centralised coach monitoring system for all electrical and climate controls and functioning of other vital systems of the train set has been introduced.

    The trains will have a push back arrangement for reclining of seats for a more comfortable travel experience, they said.

    The new trains will also have fire survival cables in door circuits, the officials said.

    The system of air purification has also been reworked with availability of ventilation for three hours in case of failure of power supply to the roof mounted air conditioning package unit.

    This will mean better availability, and a more reliable and bacteria free air conditioning system, officials said.

    The trains will also be provided with higher flood protection underframe equipment to ensure reliability during heavy rains.

    The first prototype rake with these specifications is tentatively planned to be dispatched in March 2022, which will be put for commercial service tentatively by June 2022, the officials said.