Maligaon, 23rdFebruary, 2023: The indigenously built Vande Bharat Express was introduced four years back as an icon of Atmanirbhar Bharat. So far, 10 Vande Bharat Express trains are running all over Indian Railways connecting different cities through high speed route. The first Vande Bharat Express train ran between New Delhi and Varanasi on 15thFebruary, 2019. The 7th Vande Bharat Express train in this series is between Howrah & New Jalpaiguri, which was introduced by Hon'ble Prime Minister on 30th December, 2022.
Vande Bharat Express running on New Jalpaiguri - Howrah route halts at Bolpur (Shantiniketan), Malda Town and Barsoi Jn. stations. The train bring down travel time between Kolkata and New Jalpaiguri, the gateway to the Northeast considerably. This train, acting as a faster means of transport has a very good patronization with average occupancy of 100% till date since beginning of its regular run. N.F. Railway has also planned for other services of Vande Bharat from Guwahati which will be running in the zone in near future.
The Vande Bharat Express offers a myriad of superior and aircraft-like travelling experiences. It is equipped with advanced state-of-the-art safety features including an indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System - KAVACH. It also has a Wi-Fi content on-demand facility. Every coach is equipped with 32” screens providing passenger information and infotainment and side recliner seat facility. Executive Coaches have the added feature of 180-degree rotating seats. Semi-high-speed Vande Bharat Express can run up to a maximum speed of 160 kmph and has travel classes like Shatabdi trains but with better facilities.
