Growing demand from opposition MPs for Vande Bharat trains

NEW DELHI: India currently has 10 Vande Bharat Express trains plying all over the country. This semi-high-speed train is the second fastest in India. However, the demand for these trains is constantly on the rise, especially from leaders, MPs and MLAs from the opposition parties and opposition-ruled states.

An official source from the Ministry of Railways told ANI, "We are in receipt of requests from several MPs and MLAs. As of now out of 64 requests more than 15 have come from those from opposition parties or opposition-ruled states."

Leaders from Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) are some of the opposition parties who have written to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw about their demand.

Some of the MPs who have written to the Rail Minister include Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Krishna Lavu of YSRCP, V Abdurahiman from Kerala, S Gnanathiraviam from DMK amongst others.

The request has been made by leaders for the halts of Vande Bharat trains including by former Andhra Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu, YSRCP MP Vanga Geetha and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MLA Ashutosh Kale amongst others.

The first Vande Bharat train service began from Delhi to Varanasi in February 2019.

In October 2019, the second train became operational between Delhi and Katra and was a huge hit helping passengers access the Vaishno Devi Temple. On February 10 this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated twin Vande Bharat trains from Mumbai to Solapur and Shirdi.

The Vande Bharat Express, formerly known as Train 18, is a semi-high-speed train operated by Indian Railways.

It was designed and manufactured by the government-owned Integral Coach Factory, located in Chennai.