PM Modi set to flag off Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express on Thursday

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express at 1 pm on Thursday. The PM will do so via video conferencing, with Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw present at the event. 

Alongside the launch of the new line, the Prime Minister will flag off the development of the railway networks in Odisha and the electrification of all the lines. The electrification will cut down the reliance on crude oil. It will also cut down the maintenance and operating costs that come with the fuel. Rs 8,000 crore will also be invested into developing the Puri and Cuttack railway stations in the form of railway projects. 

The PM will also flag off the doubling of the Sambalpur-Titlagarh rail line, a new broad gauge rail line between Angul and Sukinda, the third line connecting Manoharpur-Rourkela-Jharsuguda-Jamga and a new broad-gauge line between Bichhupali and Jhartarbha.

Puri has likely been chosen as the inauguration point for the new line due to its significance and position as one of the country’s top pilgrimage destinations, making it a tourist hotspot. 

 

Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express DIstance

Staying true to its name, the Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will run between Puri and Howrah, covering a distance of roughly 502 km.

 

Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express Speed

The Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will cover a distance of 502 km in sub 6 hours. For comparison, the Shatabdi Express covers the same route in over seven and a half hours.

In its trial runs, the train recorded a speed of roughly 130 kmph. The train departed from the station at Howrah close to dawn at 6.10 am, and arrived at Puri roughly 6 hours later. On its trip back, the train left at 1.50 pm and reached its destination at 8.30 pm. 

 

Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express Route

The Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express runs between Odisha and West Bengal and is the first Vande Bharat Express in the South Eastern Railway Zone. 

On its Puri-Howrah route, the train will make stoppages on stations like Bhubaneswar, Kharagpur, Balasore, Cuttack and Khura. The train will stop for 2 minutes at each station, the standard of the Vande Bharat Express.