 "Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat")
Vande Bharat trains, India's maiden semi-high speed rail service, have carried more than two crore passengers till March 31 this year since the first set of two trains was flagged off between Delhi and Varanasi on February 15, 2019, officials said Monday.
The railways on Monday celebrated 171 years of existence as the first train ran on this day in 1853 between Mumbai and Thane.
The officials said the railways' journey over the years has been stupendous as it successfully expanded its network to cover almost every nook and corner of the country and, today, Vande Bharat has become a new identity of a modernizing network.
Starting from two trains on one route five years ago, today 102 Vande Bharat trains are offering their services on 100 routes covering 284 districts in 24 states and Union Territories, according to data shared by the railways.
"The distance that the Vande Bharat trains covered in the financial year in 2023-24 is equivalent to taking 310 rounds of our planet Earth. Vande Bharat, which offers several world-class passenger amenities, is a new-age train based on distributed-power technology which helps quick acceleration and deceleration along with smooth journey," a railway official said.
According to Railway officials, the national transporter's make-in-India initiative was fulfilled with this indigenous semi-high speed train which has gained a significant popularity among passengers, especially youngsters.
"The passenger data speaks for its popularity. Since its launch on February 15, 2019, more than two crore passengers have travelled in it because it offers facilities parallel to airplanes," the official said.
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He added, "I think passengers enjoy its speed, comfortable seats, sound-proof coaches, wifi services, GPS-based passenger information system, pantry facilities in each coach and transparent big size window glasses that allow them to enjoy the countryside's natural beauty among others."
The railways is in the process of launching more Vande Bharat trains as well as its sleeper version.
"Very soon, the Vande Bharat sleeper version will hit the track giving a new travel experience to the long-distance passengers. Recently, the Railway Minister visited a Bengaluru-based rail unit and inaugurated the body structure of Sleeper version," an official said.
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