Indian Railways to launch second version of Vande Bharat trains in August

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the Indian Railways will launch an upgraded second version of the semi-high-speed trains in August 2022. Of the proposed 400 trains, about 250 will be the second version of Vande Bharat trains and then the third version will be introduced.

Vaishnaw said the Vande Bharat trains currently run at 160 kilometres per hour and the second version will touch 180 kilometres per hour and the third version of the train will travel at 220 kilometres per hour.

The minister said, “The plan for Vande Bharat trains was given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2017 and the first two trains started operating in 2019. So far, both the trains have travelled 14 lakh kilometres… Last year, 75 more trains were approved that are under production. The second version of Vande Bharat will have air springs (between the coach and the wheels) and will improve the ride quality manifold.”

Vaishnaw said the bullet train project will pick up speed with a new government in Maharashtra. “The first bullet train section from Surat to Billimora is targeted to become operational by 2026. The first bullet train section made by China was 113 kilometres between Beijing and Tianjing. Our section between Ahmedabad and Vapi is 352 kilometres,” he said.