Next Vande Bharat Express Likely To Run Between Puri And Howrah

The next Vande Bharat train will likely roll out on 23 January from the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai for its forward journey between Puri and Howrah.

The ninth Vande Bharat Express is ready and will be pressed into service in the eastern sector, most probably on the Puri-Bhubaneswar-Howrah route. It will cater to the rush for Konark, sea beach, and the Lord Jagannath temple, among other destinations.

The launch date is likely to be formalised and announced shortly.

Though there are speculations that the next premium service of the Vande Bharat Express will connect New Delhi and Jaipur, this will take some more time as it requires work on high-rise overhead equipment (OHE) in the Jaipur sector.

OHE is a system of conductors or equipment carrying traction power from a traction substation to an electric locomotive.

Once the overhead pantograph is adjusted, the Vande Bharat service will be run on the route, according to the ICF.

Given the influx of pilgrims and tourists to Puri sea beach, the World Heritage Site at Konark, Chilika lagoon, and Jagannath temple from West Bengal, the operation of Vande Bharat service will serve the purpose.

Currently, there are many trains between Howrah and Puri, but once the Vande Bharat is operational, it is expected to be in great demand.

With the Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express, Bengal will have two Vande Bharat trains. The other one is the Howrah-New Jalpaiguri service, launched on 30 December 2022.

Other Vande Bharat Express routes include New Delhi-Varanasi, New Delhi-Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, and Mumbai-Ahmedabad.

The indigenously designed train set of Vande Bharat Express is equipped with state-of-the-art passenger amenities to provide rail users with a faster, more comfortable, and more convenient travel experience.

"Vande Bharat is an excellent train. It can travel 0-100 km in 52 seconds, while other trains in the world take 54 to 60 seconds. India's designs are even better than aeroplanes. It can provide the most comfortable travel experience," Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.

During the inauguration of the Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said seven Vande Bharat trains (running already) had covered a cumulative distance of 23 lakh kilometres, which is equivalent to 58 rounds of the Earth.

Modi added that more than 40 lakh passengers have travelled on these trains.

The Vande Bharat Express train has 14 AC chair car coaches and two executive AC chair car coaches with a capacity of 1,128 passengers. They are equipped with indigenously designed, modern passenger amenities.

The Railways plans to run 400 Vande Bharat trains across India in the next three years.

The train is manufactured with indigenous technology, equipped with modern features and enhanced comfort. It has automatic sliding doors, reclining seats in all classes, and rotating seats in executive classes.