Shatabdi Express will now be replaced by the Vande Bharat Express and the sleeper version is going to be an alternative to Rajdhani Express trains, said officials concerned.
The officials further said that the sleeper version of Vande Bharat Express, which has been in the headlines and attracting passengers since its launch, will be designed to travel at a speed of 220 km per hour.
These aluminum-made sleeper version trains will run at a speed of 200 km per hour on the tracks, officials added as reported by PTI.
Read More: PM Modi to distribute 71,000 appointment letters to govt recruits on Jan 20
The Railways has floated a tender for 400 Vande Bharat trains and the work will be approved by the end of this month. The first initial lot of such trains could also be sleeper versions of the indigenously made trains.
Meanwhile, four major domestic and foreign companies have come forward for the production of the trains, reported PTI.
As per the plan, the first 200 Vande Bharat trains will have seating arrangement like the Shatabdi Express and will be designed to travel at a speed of 180 km per hour. However, keeping in mind the inadequate safety and security of railway tracks, the speed of the trains will be restricted to 130 km per hour. These trains will be made of steel, officials added.
The remaining second lot of 200 Vande Bharat trains will be sleepers and they will be made of aluminium.
An official said that 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,” the official added.
Read More: Jio, Airtel and Vi oppose govt’s plan to display caller ID to limit spam calls: Here is why
“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 as quoted by PTI.
The official informed 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.
Currently, eight Vande Bharat Express trains are running on different routes in the country with the latest one being the Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam Vande Bharat Express connecting Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
Earlier, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that Vande Bharat is an excellent train. “It can travel 0-100 km in 52 seconds, while other trains in the world take 54 to 60 seconds. India’s designs are even better than aeroplanes. It can provide the most comfortable travel experience,” the minister had said.
