Sleeper version of Vande Bharat train will be designed to travel at 220 km per hour: Officials
The chair car Vande Bharat Express trains will be replaced by Shatabdi Express in a phased manner, while the sleeper version is going to be an alternative to Rajdhani Express trains, officials said.
PTI JANUARY 19, 2023 / 09:44 PM IST
Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw during the flagging off ceremony of Vande Bharat Express train connecting Secunderabad and Visakhapatnam, in Secunderabad, on January 15, 2023. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the train. (PTI Photo)
The sleeper version of the Vande Bharat Express train, which has become a centre of attraction among railway passengers, will be designed to travel at a speed of 220 km per hour, officials said on Thursday.
These aluminum-made sleeper version trains, however, will run at a speed of 200 km per hour on the tracks, they said.
The chair car Vande Bharat Express trains will be replaced by Shatabdi Express in a phased manner, while the sleeper version is going to be an alternative to Rajdhani Express trains, they said.
The Railways has issued a tender for 400 Vande Bharat trains and the work will be approved by the end of this month, they said.
Some of the initial lot of such trains could also be sleeper versions of the indigenously made trains, according to officials.
Four major domestic and foreign companies have come forward for the production, officials said.
According to the plan, the first 200 Vande Bharat trains will have seating arrangement on the lines of Shatabdi Express and will be designed to travel at a speed of 180 km per hour.
But considering the inadequate safety and security of railway tracks, their speed will be restricted to 130 km per hour. These trains will be made of steel, officials said.
In the second phase, 200 Vande Bharat trains will be sleepers and they will be made of aluminium.
"The second version of the sleeper Vande Bharat trains will run at a maximum speed of 200 km per hour. For this, the tracks of Delhi-Mumbai, Delhi-Kolkata railways are being repaired, signal system, bridges are being fixed, and fencing work is going on," an official said.
"Apart from this, anti-collision technical armour is being installed on both the railway routes at a cost of Rs 1,800 crore," the official said.
Four hundred trains will be produced at ICF at Chennai in Tamil Nadu, Latur Rail Factory in Maharashtra and Sonepat in Haryana in the next two years, officials said.
Indian Railways to operate first Vande Bharat Express in Rajasthan on this route. Details here
Vande Bharat Express train (PTI)
Vande Bharat Express comprises 14 AC Chair Car Coaches and two Executive AC Chair Car Coaches with a capacity of 1,128 passengers
Rajasthan may soon get the premium train service of Vande Bharat Express. According to reports Indian Railways may soon launch a Vande Bharat Express service connecting New Delhi and Jaipur. The travel time between the two cities is likely to be reduced to less than two hours from the current four hours time taken by the other express trains operating on the New Delhi- Jaipur route.
At present, a total of eight Vande Bharat Express trains are operating on the various routes of the country with the latest being the Secunderabad- Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express which connects the two Telegu-speaking states. The other Vande Bharat Express trains which operate are the New Delhi-Varanasi, New Delhi-Katra, Gandhinagar Capital- Mumbai, New Delhi-Amb Andaura, Chennai-Mysuru, Bilaspur-Nagpur and the Howrah- New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express trains.
Railways Minister Vaishnaw said, "Vande Bharat is an outstanding train. It can travel 0-100 km in 52 seconds, whereas other trains in the world take 54 to 60 seconds. The designs of Vande Bharat are even better than that of an aeroplane. It can provide the most comfortable travelling experience."
PM Modi during the inauguration of the Secunderabad- Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express said seven Vande Bharat trains (already introduced) have covered the cumulative distance of 23 lakh kilometres, equivalent to 58 rounds of earth. More than 40 lakh passengers have travelled in Vande Bharat trains so far.
Vande Bharat Express comprises 14 AC Chair Car Coaches and two Executive AC Chair Car Coaches with a capacity of 1,128 passengers. It will provide the fastest travelling facility between these two stations and has exclusive reserved sitting accommodation. The train is manufactured with indigenous technology, equipped with modern features and enhanced comfort. It has automatic sliding doors, provided with reclining seats in all classes and rotating seats in executive class.
The indigenously designed train set of Vande Bharat Express is equipped with state-of-the-art passenger amenities. Railways said that it will provide rail users with a faster, more comfortable and more convenient travel experience.
New Delhi to Jaipur Vande Bharat Express train by Indian Railways to be launched soon?
Jaipur's BJP MP Ramcharan Bohra recently met Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav to discuss several development projects for Jaipur.
Vande Bharat Express Trains have many safety features including Kavach technology. (Representative image from PTI)
Vande Bharat Express: Indian Railways will soon launch the premium train Vande Bharat Express from New Delhi to Jaipur. The semi-high-speed train will connect the two cities in less time. Currently, the journey between the two cities takes 5-6 hours.
New Delhi to Jaipur Vande Bharat Express Train
According to a Zee Hindustan report, Vande Bharat Express between Delhi and Jaipur could start from March this year.
Vande Bharat Express trains routes
There is a total of eight Vande Bharat Express trains operating on the various routes of the country with the latest being the Secunderabad- Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express. The other Vande Bharat Express trains which operate are the New Delhi-Varanasi, New Delhi-Katra, Gandhinagar Capital- Mumbai, New Delhi-Amb Andaura, Chennai-Mysuru, Bilaspur-Nagpur and the Howrah- New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express trains.
Vande Bharat Express has covered a cumulative distance of 23 lakh kilometres. More than 40 lakh passengers have travelled in Vande Bharat trains so far.
Vande Bharat Express Trains: Facilities
Vande Bharat Express Trains have many safety features including Kavach technology. The Kavach system help to prevent accidents on rail tracks. These trains have reclining seats in all classes while the executive coaches have the added feature of 180-degree rotating seats.
Other facilities such as sliding doors, personalized reading lights, mobile charging points, attendant call buttons, bio-toilets, automatic entry and exit doors, CCTV cameras.
Budget 2023: Kavach – World’s most affordable automatic train accident protection technology! Here’s progress report
Union Budget: With Kavach, Indian Railways brings in zero accident provision, committed to provide safe and high-speed train journeys across India.
January 18, 2023 1:02:14 pm
The Kavach system provides unparalleled safety. (PTI Photo)
Union Budget 2023: In last year’s Union Budget 2022-23, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced, a capital expenditure of Rs 1,37,000 crore has been allocated to the Ministry of Railways. According to Sitharaman, 2,000 kilometres of the Indian Railways network will be brought under Kavach as a part of the Modi government’s ambitious Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative. This announcement was made for safety and capacity augmentation in 2022-23. Through this technology there is the probability of a single error in 10,000 years. Let us take a look at the progress report of Kavach:
Progress report of Kavach:
Till 31st December 2022, 1,455 route kilometres of the Indian Railways network covered under Kavach.
At present, ‘Kavach’ work is in progress on Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah corridors (3,000 route kilometres).
Kavach will be rolled out in 4,000 to 5,000 km every subsequent year.
What is Kavach?
‘Kavach’, which means armour, is the indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system. It is being promoted by the Indian Railways as the world’s cheapest automatic train collision protection system.
Through ‘Kavach‘ trains will stop on their own when digital system notices any manual error like “jumping” of the red signal or any other malfunction. This will avoid accidents and many unwanted errors.
‘Kavach’ is developed by Research Design and Standards Organization (RDSO).
The major achievement of this ‘Kavach’ is that it is designed, developed and manufactured in India and will be deployed in India and exported to the world.
Indian Railways to soon launch Vande Metro services. Know its features, other details
Updated: 02 Feb 2023, 06:24 AM IST
The Railways is already working on a sleeper version of the semi-high speed Vande Bharat trains.
While the Vande Bharat trains did not get a mention in the finance minister's speech, the announcement of a mini version of it was the highlight of Vaishnaw's post-budget press conference
Indian Railways in near future will launch services of Vande Metro on the lines of Vande Bharat trains which are operating across the country. This was announced by Railway Minister Ashwani Vaishnaw after the presentation of Union Budget 2023 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the parliament. The Vande Metro, a mini version of the Vande Bharat Express trains, will be developed by the Railways for people living around big cities to travel to and fro in comfort between their place of work and hometowns, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
While the Vande Bharat trains did not get a mention in the finance minister's speech, the announcement of a mini version of it was the highlight of Vaishnaw's post-budget press conference. "For making the travelling easier for the passengers of nearby areas of a state, Vande metro trains, completely manufactured in India under the vision of PM Modi, will soon be introduced in the country," the minister said.
Features of Vande Bharat Metro:
"We are also developing Vande Metro... Around big cities, there are large habitations from where people would like to come to the big city for work or leisure, and go back to their home place. "For that, we are coming up with a Vande Bharat equivalent Vande Metro. This year the design and production will be completed, and in the next financial year, a ramp-up of production of the train will be done.
"These will be like rapid shuttle-like experience for passengers," said Vaishnaw.
Officials said that these trains will be of eight coaches and will be like a metro train.
The Ministry of Railways has directed the General Managers (GMs) of Chennai-based Integral Coach Factory (ICF) and Lucknow-based Research Design and Standard Organisation (RDSO) to roll out the rakes of eight-car Vande Bharat trains at the earliest.
A senior railway official said the decision to run Vande Bharat trains with a shorter car composition will prove a boon to passengers, especially traders, students and the working class people who want to visit different big cities.
"Today's budget will make India the growth engine for the whole world. As the prime minister said the world is looking at India as a ray of hope, the Budget envisages that vision.
"The Budget tries to bring change in the lives of every section of society. I thank the Prime Minister," Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
The lack of investment in Railways for years had hindered it from achieving its potential. This ?2.41 lakh crore capital will bridge that gap. This will become a medium to fulfill the aspirations of our 800 crore passengers who travel in railways, Vaishnaw said.
Normal Vande Bharat trains have a 16-car composition.
Vande Bharat trains will now also be manufactured in Latur (Maharashtra), Sonipat (Haryana) and Raebareli (Uttar Pradesh) apart from ICF Chennai, the minister said.
"You saw how the Vande Bharat train has been accepted as a world-class train. The production will be ramped up," he said. He said that by end of the next financial year, Railways should be able to roll out about two or three new Vande Bharat trains every week.
He also said that India will get its first Hydrogen train by December 2023 which will be completely indigenously manufactured."It would initially be run on heritage circuits like Kalka-Shimla and will be expanded," he said.
Budget 2023-24: Railways gets record Rs 2.6-trillion capex boost
According to a senior official, Railways' prime borrowing arm, Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), has zero borrowings for the fiscal under review
The Railways is targeting an operating ratio of 98.45 per cent for the fiscal year, compared to a revised ratio of 98.22 per cent in FY23
Indian Railways is set to see a record capital expenditure (capex) of Rs 2.6 trillion in fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24). This announcement in the Budget on February 1 would give a push to the massive infrastructure expansion lined up and the government’s share would contribute around Rs 2.4 trillion to this — the highest ever.
The Railways is targeting an operating ratio of 98.45 per cent for the fiscal year, compared to a revised ratio of 98.22 per cent in FY23. This means the Railways aims to spend about Rs 98.45 for every Rs 100 it earns in FY24. During the last fiscal year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had allocated Rs 1.4 trillion for the rail sector. “This year is the highest ever outlay in the history of Railways — almost nine times the outlay made in 2013-14,’ the finance minister said.
According to a senior official, Railways’ prime borrowing arm, Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC), has zero borrowings for the fiscal under review. This is a sharp change from over Rs 1 trillion worth of borrowings in FY21.
The total receipts of the Railways from passenger, goods, other coaching, sundry, other heads and railway recruitment boards are pegged at Rs 2.65 trillion during FY24, as against a Revised Estimate (RE) of Rs 2.43 trillion in FY23.
“The estimates are neither conservative, nor optimistic,” Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told Business Standard when asked whether the government had gone for a conservative revenue estimate. “We've taken realistic estimates, as there are some periods with slowdown in revenues. The January to March quarter sees a lot of projects commissioned, and mobility on the network gets impacted adversely,” he added.
While admitting that operating expenses had naturally increased, he said next year’s operating ratio would be better as the Railways would save on energy cost through electrification. In FY23, the RE for goods revenue was seen at Rs 1.65 trillion, which is expected to increase to Rs 1.79 trillion according to the Budget Estimate for FY24.
“The outlay (in Railways) will bolster construction activities, including demand for steel, aluminium, and electronics products among others, provide employment opportunities, and enhance logistics network, strengthening last-mile connectivity to ports, giving impetus to schemes like Indian Maritime Vision 2030,” said Ajay Sawhney, partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.
The capex is likely to be spent on various key projects including on 500 planned Vande Bharat Express trains, achieving 100 per cent electrification, and an ambitious station redevelopment plan (1,275 stations under Amrit Bharat scheme). To boost its electrification plans, the Railways would set up “ultra mega solar plants,” said Vaishnaw. “This will be done to ensure that not only electrification, but the source of the electricity itself is green,” the minister said.
Currently, 85 per cent of the rail network is electrified, but is largely powered through coal. In addition to the Vande Bharat Express, Railways has also lined up plans to refurbish coaches of premier trains such as Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Duronto, Humsafar, and Tejas.
Of the total capex outlay provided for in the Budget, Rs 2.4 trillion is coming from general revenues, Rs 200 crore from Nirbhaya Fund, Rs 3,000 crore from internal resource, and Rs 17,000 crore from extra-budgetary resources.
Focussing on clean energy, the Indian Railways is also looking to come up with 35 hydrogen-fuel based trains. Similarly, the manufacturing of 4,500 newly designed automobile carrier coaches with side entry, 5,000 LHB coaches, and 58,000 wagons are also expected to get a push. “Production of Vande Bharat trains will be ramped up at a rapid scale. We will have a hydrogen train by December this year, and we plan to run these trains on all heritage routes,” Vaishnaw said.
The Railways will also invest heavily in initiatives like the Gati Shakti Multimodal Cargo Terminal, Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-speed Rail Project and Dedicated Freight Corridor Project, among others. The government plans to launch at least 75 Vande Bharat trains by August 2023. On the other hand, bids for 200 Vande Bharat sleeper trains are also expected to be awarded soon. Though India earlier had a separate railway Budget, it was merged with the main Budget in 2016 by the Narendra Modi government.
“After Vande Bharat Trains, we are now working to develop Vande Metro, which will be a world-class shuttle-like experience. The plan is to launch Vande Metros across the country,” Vaishnaw said.
Railways plans to upgrade ticketing capacity from 25K to 2.25 lakh per minute: Minister
Updated: Feb 3 2023 6:32PM
New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI) The railways plans to upgrade its capacity of issuing tickets from 25,000 to 2.25 lakh per minute and attending to enquiries from 40,000 to four lakh per minute, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Friday.
At a press conference here, the minister also said a target has been set to lay new railway tracks for a distance of 7,000 kilometres in financial year 2023-24.
"We plan to improve the passenger reservation system's back-end infrastructure. At present, the capacity of ticketing is around 25,000 tickets per minute. The target is to upgrade it to 2.25 lakh per minute," he said.
Vande Bharat Metro Coming Soon: Know Key Features, Other Details Here
Vande Metro services, a mini version of the Vande Bharat Express trains, will soon be launched in the country.
Published: February 2, 2023 7:45 AM IST
Vande Bharat Metro: Vande Metro services, a mini version of the Vande Bharat Express trains, will soon be launched in the country. The design and production of Vande Metro will be completed this year. The Vande Metro services will be launched with an aim to help people in big cities to travel to and fro comfort between their place of work and hometowns.
“For making the travelling easier for the passengers of nearby areas of a state, Vande metro trains, completely manufactured in India under the vision of PM Modi, will soon be introduced in the country,” Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw
“We are developing Vande Metro. Around big cities, there are large habitations from where people would like to come to the big city for work or leisure, and go back to their home place. For that, we are coming up with a Vande Bharat equivalent Vande Metro. This year the design and production will be completed, and in the next financial year, a ramp-up of production of the train will be done,” Ashwini Vaishnaw said.
Vande Metro: All You Need To Know
· A sleeper version of the semi-high speed Vande Bharat trains is being developed by the railway department.
· These trains will be of eight coaches and will be like a metro train.
· Vande Bharat Metro will be like rapid shuttle-like experience for passengers.
· Vande Metro is being developed to help people travel in comfort from their hometowns to offices in big cities.
· The Ministry of Railways has directed the General Managers (GMs) of Chennai-based Integral Coach Factory (ICF) and Lucknow-based Research Design and Standard Organisation (RDSO) to roll out the rakes of eight-car Vande Bharat trains at the earliest.
A senior railway official quoted by news agency PTI said the decision to run Vande Bharat trains with a shorter car composition will prove a boon to passengers, especially traders, students and the working class people who want to visit different big cities. Normal Vande Bharat trains have a 16-car composition. Vande Bharat trains will now also be manufactured in Latur (Maharashtra), Sonipat (Haryana) and Raebareli (Uttar Pradesh) apart from ICF Chennai, the minister said.
