PM Modi Flags Off Nine Vande Bharat Express Trains

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday flagged off nine Vande Bharat trains today via video conferencing.

Speaking on the occasion, PM Modi said that the flagging off of nine Vande Bharat Trains is an unprecedented occasion of modern connectivity in the country. "This speed and scale of infrastructure development in the country is exactly matching the aspirations of 140 crore Indians", he said.

The Prime Minister said that the trains started today are more modern and comfortable. He said these Vande Bharat Trains are symbols of a new enthusiasm of new India. He expressed delight about the growing craze of Vande Bharat as he informed that more than one crore eleven lakh passengers have travelled in Vande Bharat trains.

The Prime Minister informed that 25 Vande Bharat trains are serving people in different states and union territories. 9 more Vande Bharat are being added to that today and, he said "day is not far when Vande Bharat will connect every part of the country". He also noted Vande Bharat's utility for the people who wish to save time and perform same day travel. He also highlighted increased tourism in the places connected by Vande Bharat leading to increased economic activities.

Prime Minister Modi underlined the atmosphere of hope and confidence in the county as every citizen is feeling proud of the achievements of the country. He mentioned historic successes of Chandrayaan 3 and Aditya L1. Similarly, G20 success has showcased India's strength of Democracy, Demography and Diversity, he said.

He also mentioned Narishakti Vandan Act as a decisive moment for pushing women led development. In this regard he mentioned that many railway stations are being run by women functionaries.

The Prime Minister said that a confident India is working on the needs of its present and future simultaneously. He listed PM Gatishakti Masterplan for seamless coordination in infrastructure development and New Logistics policy for reduction in transportation and exports related charges. He also talked about multimodal connectivity as one mode of transport should support other modes. All this is to improve ease of travel for the common citizens, he said.

Stressing the importance of railways in the lives of common citizens, the Prime Minister lamented the neglect of this important sector in the earlier times. Elaborating on the efforts of the current government for the transformation of Indian Railways the Prime Minister informed about increased budget as this year's budget for railway is 8 times the rail budget of 2014. Similarly, work is going on for doubling, electrification and new routes, he added.

The new trains that were flagged off are:

• Udaipur - Jaipur Vande Bharat Express
• Tirunelveli-Madurai- Chennai Vande Bharat Express
• Hyderabad -Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express
• Vijayawada - Chennai (via Renigunta) Vande Bharat Express
• Patna - Howrah Vande Bharat Express
• Kasaragod - Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express
• Rourkela - Bhubaneswar - Puri Vande Bharat Express
• Ranchi - Howrah Vande Bharat Express
• Jamnagar-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express