The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi flagged off Vande Bharat Express connecting Nagpur and Bilaspur from platform number 1 of the Nagpur Railway Station today.

The Prime Minister inspected the train coaches of the Vande Bharat Express and took stock of the onboard facilities. Shri Modi inspected the control centre of the locomotive engine of Vande Bharat Express and also took stock of the development plans of the Nagpur and Ajni Railway Stations. The travel time from Nagpur to Bilaspur will be reduced to 5 hours 30 mins from 7-8 hours.

The Prime Minister tweeted:

“Flagged off the Vande Bharat Express between Nagpur and Bilaspur. Connectivity will be significantly enhanced by this train.”

The Prime Minister was accompanied by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Eknath Shinde, the Governor of Maharashtra, Shri Bhagat Singh Koshyari, the Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari when he arrived at Nagpur Railway Station.

Background

The introduction of the train will help boost tourism in the region and provide a comfortable and faster mode of travel. The travel time from Nagpur to Bilaspur will be 5 hours and 30 mins. This will be the sixth Vande Bharat train to be introduced in the country and is an advanced version compared to the earlier ones, being much lighter and capable of reaching higher speeds in a shorter duration. Vande Bharat 2.0 is equipped with more advancements and improved features such as reaching a speed of 0 to 100 kilometres per hour in just 52 seconds, and a maximum speed of up to 180 kilometres per hour. The improved Vande Bharat Express will weigh 392 tons when compared to the previous version of 430 tons. It will also have a Wi-Fi content on-demand facility. Every coach has 32” screens providing passenger information and infotainment compared to 24” in the previous version. Vande Bharat Express will also be environmentally friendly as the ACs will be 15 per cent more energy efficient. With dust-free clean air cooling of the traction motor, travel will become more comfortable. A side recliner seat facility provided only to Executive Class passengers earlier will now be made available for all classes. Executive Coaches have the added feature of 180-degree rotating seats.

In the new design of Vande Bharat Express, a photo-catalytic ultraviolet air purification system is installed in the Roof-Mounted Package Unit (RMPU) for air purification. As recommended by Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO), Chandigarh, this system is designed and installed on both ends of RMPU to filter and clean the air free from germs, bacteria, viruses etc. coming through fresh air and return air.

The Vande Bharat Express 2.0 offers various superior and aircraft-like travelling experiences. It is equipped with advanced state-of-the-art safety features including an indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System - KAVACH.

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