Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, which are both going to the polls later this year, have received Vande Bharat trains in the past few months.
New Delhi: After a two-month hiatus, nine new Vande Bharat trains have left the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai. The Western Railway, North Western Railway, South Central Railway, East Coast Railway, and East Central Railway have each received a new train. Another train is yet to be assigned to a specific zone, but it is possible that it will be sent to poll-bound Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan, as per a report in the News18.
Currently, there are a total of 25 Vande Bharat trains running across India. The Northern Railway has the most with four trains, followed by the Southern and Central zones, each with three trains. The Western, West Central, and North Western Railways have two trains each. The remaining nine zones each have one Vande Bharat train.
9 New Vande Bharat Trains: Route Details
The routes for the nine new Vande Bharat trains have not been officially announced yet, but the report suggests that two of them might run from Jaipur to Indore and Udaipur. The Jaipur-Indore train is also expected to pass through Neemuch. Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently visited Udaipur and Neemuch railway stations, which could be a sign that these trains will be running on these routes.
The East Coast Railway’s allocated train is expected to run between Puri and Rourkela in Odisha. Elections in Odisha will be held in early 2024.
The exact routes for four Vande Bharat trains, including three for the Southern Railways, are not finalized yet. Currently, there are six Vande Bharat trains running from Delhi to various destinations, and five in Maharashtra, with four starting from Mumbai and one connecting Nagpur to Bilaspur.
Poll Bound Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh Recieve Vande Bharat Gift
Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, which are both going to the polls later this year, have received Vande Bharat trains in the past few months. Rajasthan received its first Vande Bharat train in April, and a second one in July. Madhya Pradesh received its first Vande Bharat train in April. The one train allocated to the East Coast Railway is likely to run between Puri and Rourkela in Odisha, which is also going to the polls in early 2024.