Kochi: Kerala’s second Vande Bharat (VB) Express between Kasaragod and Thiruvananthapuram was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday through videoconferencing.
The premier superfast train was among eight other VB trains on different routes that were inaugurated by the Prime Minister.
Modi said on the occasion, “The craze for Vande Bharat trains has been growing. Over 1.11 crore people have travelled on the VB trains so far. This number is increasing every day. So far, 25 VB trains have been running; today, nine more have been added to the fleet. That day is not far when Vande Bharat will connect all parts of India.”
He said the Vande Bharat trains have become important for those who want to complete their journeys in minimum time. “These trains have speeded up tourism and economic activities as well. The number of tourists has risen in places where the VB trains are operating. With the rise in tourism, the wages of businessmen and shopkeepers have also gone up. The demand for jobs has also increased,” he said.
Union minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan, who was present at the Kasaragod railway station for the inauguration ceremony, promised that the state would get more VB trains in the future. A large number of people including ministers, MPs, political leaders and students travelled as part of the inaugural journey.
The Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram VB Express inaugurated on Sunday had eight coaches in a new design of saffron, white and black colour combination built at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai.
As per the schedule drawn by the Southern Railways, the train would leave Kasaragod every day except Tuesday at 7 am and reach Thiruvananthapuram at 3:05 pm. In the return journey, the train would leave Thiruvananthapuram Central at 4:05 pm and reach Kasaragod at 11:58 pm, according to a communication by the railways.
The train would have stoppages at Kannur, Kozhikode, Tirur, Shoranur, Thrissur, Ernakulam, Alappuzha and Kollam.
Kerala has an existing Vande Bharat Express on the same route that departs from Thiruvananthapuram in the morning and reaches Kasaragod in the afternoon. It runs via Kottayam while the new VB Express would run via Alappuzha.
The fare from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram on the new VB Express is ₹1,555 in chair car (CC) class and ₹2,835 in the executive class (EC).
