Indian Railways Vande Bharat train expansion: With the Ministry of Railways approving four new Vande Bharat trains (i.e. eight services), the total number of such train services in the country is set to increase to 164. Presently, a total of 156 Vande Bharat train services are operational across the Indian Railways (IR) network.
Developed by Chennai-based Integral Coach Factory (ICF), these semi-high-speed trains have revolutionised the rail travel in the country. The first Vande Bharat Express train was flagged off on February 15, 2019, on the New Delhi-Kanpur-Allahabad-Varanasi route.
Vande Bharat train routes
The newly approved Vande Bharat Express trains are:
- Train number 26651 KSR Bengaluru-Ernakulam Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26652 Ernakulam-KSR Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26462 Firozpur Cantt-Delhi Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26461 Delhi-Firozpur Cantt Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26504 Lucknow-Saharanpur Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26503 Saharanpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26422 Varanasi-Khajuraho Vande Bharat Express
- Train number 26421 Khajuraho-Varanasi Vande Bharat Express
Vande Bharat Express train features
- Fitted with KAVACH.
- Higher acceleration with design/operating speed of 180/160 kmph.
- Air conditioning units with indigenously developed UV-C lamp based disinfection system.
- Jerk Free Semi-Permanent couplers.
- Centrally controlled Automatic Plug Doors and Fully Sealed wider gangways.
- Better Ride Comfort.
- CCTVs in all Coaches.
- Emergency Alarm Push buttons and Talk Back Units on all Coaches.
- Improved fire safety – Aerosol based fire detection and suppression system in electrical cabinets and lavatories.
- For Divyangjan passengers special lavatory in the driving coaches on each end.
- Driver-Guard communication with voice recording facility & Crash hardened memory.
- Coach condition monitoring System (CCMS) display with remote monitoring.
Vande Bharat 4.0 train launch details
Currently, the third-generation of Vande Bharat Express i.e. Vande Bharat 3.0 trains are in service. However, railways is working on the Vande Bharat 4.0 train, that is expected to be launched within the next 18 months.
“Vande Bharat 4.0 is expected to be launched within the next 18 months, aiming to set global benchmarks in every aspect of performance and passenger experience. The goal is to establish Vande Bharat 4.0 as the global standard, a train so advanced in quality and comfort that countries around the world would aspire to adopt it,” the Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said last month.
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