Vande Bharat Sleeper train commissioning under way, ICF Chennai to make 60 rakes

NEW DELHI: The first 16-car prototype rake of the Vande Bharat Sleeper train is currently undergoing commissioning after passing field trials successfully, said Minister of Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha recently.

Additionally, a total of 10 rakes in 16-car composition and 50 rakes in 24-car composition have been provisioned for manufacture at Chennai's Integral Coach Factory (ICF), he informed.

Further, the minister said that contracts have been awarded for manufacturing 200 more Vande Bharat Sleeper rakes in Indian Railway Production Units, utilising railway staff in collaboration with technology partners.

Meanwhile, several trial runs of the 16-car prototype rake have successfully taken place under the Jhansi Division, Kota Division, and along the Ahmedabad-Mumbai Central route where the train reached its maximum speed of 180 kilometres per hour. Following this, an additional nine Vande Bharat Sleeper train sets are scheduled to be deployed between April and December 2025, with full-scale production of the 24-car variant commencing in 2026-27, per a press release.

Designed for overnight travel, the sleeper variant of the Indian Railways’ flagship Vande Bharat is a semi-high-speed, long-distance electric multiple unit (EMU) train offering a luxurious experience with features like ultra-comfortable berths, onboard Wi-Fi, and an aircraft-like design along with safety features like crash buffers, deformation tubes, and a fire barrier wall.

The sleeper trains will be divided into AC 1st Class, AC 2-Tier, and AC 3-Tier, with a total capacity to carry 1,128 passengers.