Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off India’s first Vande Bharat sleeper train between Howrah and Guwahati at Malda Town railway station on Saturday.
It was the first in a slew of railway projects that the Prime Minister is launching during his two-day trip to Bengal, which goes to the polls later this year.
“This is the country’s first Vande Bharat sleeper train connecting the land of Mother Kali to the land of Mother Kamakhya; In the coming times, this modern train will expand across the entire country; I congratulate Bengal, Assam, and the entire country on this modern sleeper train,” Modi said at the launch.
The inaugural train left from Malda, but on other days, it will leave from Howrah, said a railway official.
“The fully air-conditioned Vande Bharat sleeper train is set to offer passengers an airline-like travel experience at economical fares. It will reduce travel time by around 2.5 hours on the Howrah–Guwahati (Kamakhya) route,” said a Union government release.
From Howrah, the train will run six days a week (barring Wednesday). It will leave Howrah at 6.20pm and reach Guwahati at 8.20am the next day.
At Malda, Modi launched multiple rail and road infrastructure projects worth ₹3,250 crore, aimed at “strengthening connectivity and accelerating development in Bengal and the North-Eastern region”.
The projects include the new rail line between Balurghat and Hili; freight maintenance facilities at New Jalpaiguri; upgrade of the Siliguri Loco Shed; and modernisation of Vande Bharat train maintenance facilities in Jalpaiguri district.
Modi also virtually flagged off four new Amrit Bharat Express trains: New Jalpaiguri- Nagercoil Amrit Bharat Express; New Jalpaiguri- Tiruchirappalli Amrit Bharat Express; Alipurduar – SMVT Bengaluru Amrit Bharat Express; and Alipurduar – Mumbai (Panvel) Amrit Bharat Express.
On Sunday, the Prime Minister will be at Singur in Hooghly, where he will lay the foundation stone and flag off various development projects worth around ₹830 crore.
From Singur, he will virtually flag off three Amrit Bharat Express trains: between Howrah and Anand Vihar in Delhi; between Sealdah and Varanasi; and between Santragachhi and Tambaram (near Chennai).