Vande Bharat's next is 24-car sleeper; 50 of them will roll out from ICF in Chennai

CHENNAI: Vande Bharat trains will feature a 24-car sleeper version in another two years and the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in the city will be producing 50 of them.

Disclosing this to the media after unveiling the prototype of the 16-coach fully air-conditioned VB Sleeper train set at ICF furnishing division, U Subba Rao, general manager of ICF, said: “We received an order for producing 50 trains. Each train will consist of 24 cars each. It will be fully produced in ICF. Tenders have been floated for their propulsion system. Once the tender is done in the next 15 to 20 days, the car body and furnishing tenders will be finalised.”

Exuding confidence that they would produce the trains in 18 months from the time of finalisation of all the tenders, Subba Rao said it would be a 24-car rake with a pantry car so that the train would be suitable for running much longer distances like Rajdhani Express. “In 24 months, we will have those trains,” he added.

The ICF general manager also revealed that the Railway Board had asked them to increase the length of the VB chair car rakes because of its popularity. “We have produced eight and 16-car VBs. Now, we are only going to produce 20-car trains. In fact, three of the 20-car trains have already been produced. One has been commissioned between Banaras and Delhi. Whatever VB chair car trains we produce, it will only be 20-car trains,” Subba Rao added.

Categorically rejecting reports about the cessation of train 18 or Vande Bharat production, the ICF general manager said they have so far produced 76 VB chair cars. “Our order is for 97 trains (VB chair cars). We will produce the remaining – another 11 by the end of the year and another 11 in the first four to five months of next year,” he said, announcing that the ICF has received orders for manufacturing seven more Vande Metro or Namo Bharat trains for which they have placed orders for the propulsion system.