The proposed and much-awaited Vande Bharat Sleeper trains and Vande Metro have entered the testing stage, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced while speaking to the media about the budget on Wednesday, adding that 50 more Amrit Bharat trains have been sanctioned.
“Both sleeper (Vande Bharat) and Vande Metro have entered the testing stage,” the minister said as he noted that the production of Vande Bharat trains has reached one per week or in 10 days.
“Amrit Bharat was launched in January and for any new train, at least one is kept for testing… 50 Amrit Bharat trains have been sanctioned. The work has already started. These are completely non-AC trains. Of the 22 coaches, 11 are sleeper and 11 are general,” he said.
All these trains have a new design that offers better service and comfort to passengers. While Amrit Bharat trains were formally launched in December last year, Vande Bharat trains have been operational since 2019.
The sleeper version of Vande Bharat trains and the Vande Metro are yet to be launched, though the ministry is hopeful they will be rolled out soon.
The Amrit Bharat train is an LHB push pull train with non air-conditioned coaches. It has locos at both ends for better acceleration. Amrit Bharat express provides improved facilities for rail passengers. This includes better seats, better luggage rack, mobile charging point with suitable mobile holder, LED lights, CCTV, and better public information system.
Two Amrit Bharat trains are operational — Darbhanga-Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Amrit Bharat Express and Malda Town-Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminus (Bengaluru) Amrit Bharat Express.
Vande Bharat trains started operations from 2019 and as of July 19, 102 services or 51 trains are running across Indian Railways, connecting all states having broad gauge electrified network.
“Introduction of train services, including Vande Bharat Express services, is an ongoing process subject to traffic justification, operational feasibility, resource availability,” the ministry said in the Lok Sabha.
Last year, News18 had reported about the design and comfort that the Vande Bharat sleeper will offer. The trains are expected to be launched around the new year.
‘Vande Metro’ is a combination of Vande Bharat trains and Electric Multiple Unit (EMUs) for cities that are around 100 kilometres apart. Though the trains were expected to start around the end of last year, they have been delayed.
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