South Central Railway (SCR) is likely to get two more Vande Bharat Express trains this month – one from Kacheguda to Yeshwantpur and another from Vijayawada to Chennai. Both the trains are expected to be eight-coach trains and could be given the green signal on August 15, Independence Day, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
While the entire administration is literally burning the midnight oil currently to be ready for the launch of the first phase of modernisation of 50 (21 in Telangana) stations with expenditure of ₹894-crore by the Prime Minister on virtual mode on Sunday from Delhi as part of the countrywide programme, it is also giving finishing touches to the Vande Bharat train routes where these two new marquee trains are scheduled to be running.
Senior Railway officials, pleading anonymity, stated that electric traction and other infrastructure work is currently on at a frenetic pace to make the system ready to run the 130-kmph Vande Bharat train. The Benguluru-bound train has already started making trial runs through Mahabubnagar–Dhone section and has had attracted the attention of the local people.
This Vande Bharat rake is currently stationed in Moula Ali locomotive yard here. The other Vande Bharat proposed to be run between Vijayawada and Chennai is scheduled to be running via Renigunta with the maintenance depot to be at Chennai. Vande Bharat trains are envisaged to be run between two cities and are daytime trains but the precise timings for these two new proposed services are not yet out.
These could be starting in the morning hours in Kacheguda and Vijayawada, respectively, and return in the night. One thing is for sure, these trains are going to be chair car trains having executive class and AC chair car sections as is the case with the other two Vande Bharat trains running within SCR.
First one to be flagged off has been Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam launched in January and the second is the Secunderabad-Tirupati launched in April – both by Mr. Modi, virtually and in person, respectively.
