Prime Minister Narendra Modi today flagged off three Vande Bharat trains through video conferencing. The three trains are Meerut-Lucknow, Madurai-Bengaluru and Chennai-Nagercoil Vande Bharat. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Modi said, today from North to South a new chapter is being added to the development journey of the country. He said, with this expansion of Vande Bharat trains, the country is moving step by step towards the goal of Viksit Bharat.
The Prime Minister said, these three new Vande Bharat trains will connect the important and historic cities. He said, Temple city Madurai will now get connected to the IT city Bengaluru. Mr Modi said, Vande Bharat is the new face of the modern Indian Railways. He said, today, there is a demand for Vande Bharat in the city, on every route. The Prime Minister said, the advent of high-speed trains gives people the confidence to expand their business, employment and their dreams. He said, now 102 Vande Bharat railway services are operating across the country. Mr. Modi said, India is witnessing a transformation in its railway stations, with even smaller ones being upgraded to modern facilities like airports. He said, this enhances the ease of travel and boosts connectivity.
The Prime Minister said, in the past years, the railways with hard work have raised hopes of resolving decades-old problems, but we still have a long way to go in this direction. He said, the government will not stop until Indian Railways guarantees comfortable travel for everyone, from the poor to the middle class. The Prime Minister expressed confidence that the growth of domestic infrastructure will help empower the poor and eliminate poverty. He said, the rapid development of southern states is very important to achieve the goal of Viksit Bharat. Mr Modi said, in the current budget, Government has allocated over six thousand crore rupees for Tamil Nadu’s railway budget which is more than seven times the allocation in 2014.
Realizing the vision of ‘Make in India’ and Aatmanirbhar Bharat, the state-of-the-art Vande Bharat Express will improve connectivity in these three routes. These new Vande Bharat trains will provide people with world-class means of travel, offering speed and comfort while catering to three states, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka. The introduction of these Vande Bharat Express trains will herald a new standard of rail service to meet the needs of regular travellers, professionals, businesses, and the student community in immense measure.
In his address, Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw said, after independence, there was a lack of technology and investment in Railways and there was no change for decades. He said, the railways is a technical institution but it was politicized. Mr. Vaishnaw said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made major changes to it, increased investment ten times and inspired to adopt new technologies. He said, in the last ten years, 31 thousand 180 kilometres of new tracks have been added to the railway network and 14 kilometers of new tracks are being added everyday.
The Minister said, from independence to 2014, only 21 thousand kilometres were electrified and in the last ten years, 40 thousand kilometres were electrified. He informed that one thousand 326 railway stations are being rebuilt, the trial of Vande Metro is going on and the trial of Vande Sleeper will start in a few days. Mr Vaishnaw said, that modern technology Kavach which has been indigenously developed will be implemented on mission mode in the entire country.
