NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday flagged off Assam’s first Vande Bharat Express which will connect Guwahati in Assam and Jalpaiguri in West Bengal.
Modi on Monday virtually flagged off Northeast’s first and India’s 18th Vande Bharat Express connecting Guwahati to West Bengal’s New Jalpaiguri.
Along with the semi-high speed train, PM Modi also dedicated New Bongaigaon–Dudhnoi–Mendipather and Guwahati–Chaparmukh electrified sections to the nation.
He also inaugurated the new DEMU/MEMU (workshop for trains) shed at Lumding.
Ahead of launch, Railway minister Ashiwini Vaishnaw said that the centre works on the policy of ‘Act East.’
If you are interested to take a thrilling and a lifetime experience ride on the new Vande Bharat Express here are some of the facts that might come in handy for your cosy and comfortable travel by this state of the art train introduced by Indian Railways.
Also read: PM Modi flags off inaugural run of Vande Bharat Express
The Vande Bharat Express will cover a distance of 411 km and save about an hour of journey time, when compared with the current fastest train connecting the two places.
Vande Bharat will cover the journey in five hours and 30 minutes.
On the other hand, the current fastest train takes six hours and 30 minutes to cover the same length of the journey.
As far as the fare of Vande Bharat Express is concerned, Guwahati to New Jalpaiguri in an AC chair car will cost Rs 1,225 and Rs 2,205 in an executive chair car, according to the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) website.
The frequency of the train will be six days a week.
There will be no service of this train on Tuesday.
The timing and stoppages of Guwahati to New Jalpaiguri (NJP) Vande Bharat Express (Train No-22228) are as follows:
Guwahati: 16:30
Kamakhya: 16.40
New Bongaigaon: 18.35
Kokrajhar: 18.56
New Alipurduar: 19.48
New Cooch Behar: 20.02
New Jalpaiguri: 22.00
The timing and stoppage of NJP-Guwahati Vande Bharat Express(Train No-22227) are follows:
New Jalpaiguri: 06:10
New Cooch Behar: 07.35
New Alipurduar: 07.50
Kokrajhar: 08.40
New Bongaigaon: 09.13
Kamakhya: 11.18
Guwahati: 11.40
The Executive chair cars of Vande Bharat Express have a seating capacity of 52 each.
On the other hand, normal chair cars have a seating capacity of 78 each and the driving trailer coaches have a seating capacity of 44 each.
The bogies of Vande Bharat Express are equipped with fully suspended traction motors for 160 kmph operational speed.
The train is also equipped with ‘KAVACH, the indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System with optimum reliability.
Advanced state-of-the-art suspension system ensures smoothness on move in the train.
Green footprint plans have been prioritized by dispensing with power cars and saving about 30 per cent of electricity with an advanced regenerative braking system.
The Vande Bharat Express, formerly known as Train 18, is an electric multiple-unit train operated by Indian Railways.
Similar to Shatabdi Express, these are day train services that connect major Indian cities which are in a distance of less than a day’s time.
The train achieved a maximum speed of 183 km/h (114 mph) during testing.