The ultra-luxury semi-high-speed train was virtually flagged off by the Prime Minister from Rani Kamalapati Railway Station in Bhopal.
School students inside the inaugural journey of Bengaluru-Dharwad Vande Bharat Express. (Twitter)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually flagged off the second Vande Bharat Express in Karnataka — running between Bengaluru and Dharwad — on Tuesday, 27 June.
The ultra-luxury semi-high-speed train — the sixth in the South — was virtually flagged off by the Prime Minister from Rani Kamalapati Railway Station in Bhopal.
Karnataka Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot, Union Minister for Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi, South Western Railway (SWR) General Manager Sanjeev Kishore and Hubballi Divisional Railway Manager Harsh Khare were among those present on the occasion in Dharwad.
Gehlot and Joshi led the flagging-off ceremony on behalf of the prime minister.
The journey from Bengaluru to Dharwad in an AC Chair car will cost ₹1,165, and ₹2,210 in the Executive Class.
The return trip will be costlier by ₹230 since it includes lunch and snacks on board.
“In Dharwad to Bengaluru direction, lunch is also included in addition to snacks in the ticket itself, whereas in Bengaluru to Dharwad direction lunch is not available. Only Breakfast/Snacks will be served,” a Railway officer said.
According to the SWR authorities, the inaugural run will have stoppages at Hubballi, Haveri, Ranebennur, Harihar, Davangere, Chikkajajur, Birur, Arasikere, Tiptur, Ammasandra, Tumakuru, Doddabele, Chikkabanavara, and Yashwanthpur before reaching its final destination.
Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi virtually flagged off Dharwad-Bengaluru #VandeBharatExpress #देश_के_कोने_कोने_में_वंदे_भारत @RailMinIndia @drmubl @drmsbc pic.twitter.com/1lM72skGj0
— South Western Railway (@SWRRLY) June 27, 2023
The Vande Bharat express train will depart from KSR Bengaluru City Railway Station (SBC) at 5.45 am and reach Dharwad at 12.10 pm.
On its return journey, the train will start at 1.15 pm and arrive in Bengaluru by 7.45 pm.
A large number of school students boarded the train on its inaugural run to experience their maiden journey in the ultra-luxury train.
With broad smile on their faces, they were holding placards, which greeted the Railways and those travelling in the train.
After the Mysuru-Chennai express, this will be the second Vande Bharat in Karnataka.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off South India’s first Vande Bharat Express — plying between Chennai and Mysuru via Bengaluru — on 11 November last year.
“This isn’t just a new train but new India’s new identity,” said Modi on the occasion, adding that India wants to run fast today.
He added that more than 400 Vande Bharat trains and Vistadome coaches over the next 10 years would reform Indian Railways and become its identity.
The Vande Bharat trains are lighter and have a faster top speed. These trains take about 52 seconds to accelerate to 100 kmph and can reach a maximum speed of 160 kmph.
The semi-high-speed trains are equipped with advanced state-of-the-art safety features, including an anti-collision system and an indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System, called KAVACH.
It also has four emergency windows for each coach, four platform side cameras instead of just two, and rearward cameras outside the coach. The disaster lights in the coaches come with a battery backup of three hours.
The train also offers an on-demand Wi-Fi connectivity-enabled infotainment system, and a 32-inch LCD screen in every coach.
As per the Ministry of Railways, the air inside the train gets filtered through a photo-catalytic ultraviolet purification system. It filters and cleans the air of germs, bacteria, viruses, etc., to the extent of 99 percent.
It also provides Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning (HVAC), and sliding footsteps in coaches, for a better passenger experience and saves about 30 percent on electricity with its advanced regenerative braking system.
The Vande Bharat train has 16 coaches, with a total seating capacity of 1,128 passengers. It offers two spacious options — AC Chair Car (CC) and Executive Chair Car (EC). While all seats are recliners, the executive coaches will experience the added feature of 360-degree rotating seats.
Inaugurated by Modi on 11 November, 2022, it was the first Vandhe Bharat Express to be launched in South India. It has a travel time of 6 hours and 30 minutes. The travel time of other trains running on this route are 9 hours-30 minutes and upwards.
Launched by the prime minister on 15 January, the train linking the two Telugu states takes 8 hours and 30 minutes to reach its destination. Other trains running on this route take 11 hours to 13 hours to complete the journey.
The second Vandhe Bharat Express train from the Secunderabad Railway Station in Telangana, was flagged off by Modi on 8 April. Considering the other trains travelling to the temple town from Secunderabad, which take approximately 12 hours, the Vande Bharat Express reaches its destination in 8 hours and 15 minutes.
Launched by the prime minister on 8 April, it reaches its destination in 5 hours and 50 minutes. The other trains running on this route take around 7 hours to complete their run.
The only Vande Bharat Express running in Kerala, it has a travel time of 8 hours and 5 minutes. The other trains on this route have travel times between 10 hours and 45 minutes and 13 hours.
(With PTI inputs)
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