Produced By: Hitansh Gaur
PM Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated the Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri (NJP) Vande Bharat Express at 12 pm on Monday. It is the first premium semi high-speed train for Assam and the Northeast region. The train has become operational from today, May 29.
Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also talked about the increased railway budget for the Northeast region. He said that the allocation for the North-East was just Rs 2,000 crore before the Modi government came to power in 2014 while the current regime has increased the allocation to Rs 10,200 crore.
The new Vande Bharat inauguration took place at the Guwahati Railway Station. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma was present at the venue along with Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. Vaishnaw also mentioned the government’s new ‘Act East’ policy, which has evolved from the previous ‘Look East’ policy.
Guwahati-NJP Vande Bharat Express train will operate six days in a week and there will be no service on Tuesday. The train will start its journey from New Jalpaiguri in West Bengal at 6:10 am and reach Guwahati at 11:40 am. It will leave from Guwahati in the evening at 4.30 pm reaching New Jalpaiguri around 10:20 pm.
The latest Vande Bharat Express will cover a distance of 411 kms in 5 hours and 30 minutes reducing the current duration by one hour. The current fastest train between the two cities takes 6 hours and 30 mins. The reduced duration will be very beneficial for IT professionals, students and tourists.
The new train between Guwahati and NJP will stop at six stations - Kamakhya, New Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar, New Alipurduar, and New Coochbehar before culminating at New Jalpaiguri.
Prime Minister Modi also tweeted about the new train before the launch. He wrote, “I am delighted to flag off Assam's first Vande Bharat Express tomorrow, 29th May, at 12 noon. This state-of-the-art train embodies our commitment to providing speed, comfort, and enhanced connectivity. It will also boost tourism and enrich socio-economic development.”
This is the third Vande Bharat Express for West Bengal after Howrah-NJP and the recently launched Howrah-Puri Vande Bharat trains.
Along with the train, PM Modi also launched a new 182-km electrified section. The new electrified section will help in providing pollution-free transportation as the trains will run at a higher speed resulting in reduced running time. The launch will also open the doors of Meghalaya for the trains running on electricity.
The Vande Bharat Express has an Executive Chair capacity of 52 in each bogey, while the capacity for normal Chair cars is of 78 seats in each bogey. On the other hand, the driving trailer coaches have a seating capacity of 44 each. Ticket prices for the Guwahati-NJP Vande Bharat Express are: AC chair car - Rs 1,225 Executive chair car – Rs 2,205