Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will visit Kerala on 25th April, 2023, at around 10:30 AM and will flag off Vande Bharat Express at Thiruvananthapuram Central Railway Station. Thereafter, at around 11 AM, He will lay the foundation stone and dedicate to the nation, development projects worth more than Rs. 3200 crore, at Central Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram.
More Details:
- The Prime Minister will flag off Kerala’s first Vande Bharat Express between Thiruvananthapuram and Kasargod at Thiruvananthapuram Central Station. The train will cover 11 Districts namely Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Pathanamthitta, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod.
- He will lay the foundation stone and dedicate various projects to the nation worth more than Rs. 3200 crores. The Prime Minister will dedicate the Kochi water metro to the nation.
- This one of its kind project connects 10 islands around Kochi through battery-operated electric hybrid boats for seamless connectivity with Kochi city. Apart from Kochi Water Metro, rail electrification of Dindigul-Palani-Palakkad section will also be dedicated by the Prime Minister.
- During the event, He will also lay the foundation of various rail projects including redevelopment of Thiruvananthapuram, Kozhikode, Varkala Sivagiri railway stations; comprehensive development of Thiruvananthapuram area including Nemon and Kochuvel and increasing of sectional speed of Thiruvananthapuram-Shoranur section.
About Vande Bharat Express:
- Indian Railways launched India’s first indigenous Semi High Speed train, Vande Bharat Express. The first Vande Bharat Express train was flagged off on February 15, 2019, on the New Delhi Kanpur-Allahabad-Varanasi route.
- On November 11, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the fifth Vande Bharat Express train from Mysuru to Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. MGR Chennai Central. This is also the first such train in South India.
- The Vande Bharat Express can run up to a maximum speed of 160 kmph and has travel classes like Shatabdi Train but with better facilities. It aims to provide a totally new travel experience to passengers.
- Speed, Safety and Service are the hallmarks of this train. Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai, a Railways Production unit, has been the force behind a completely in-house design and manufacture, computer modelling and working with a large number of suppliers for system integration in just 18 months.
Source: PIB- Press Release | Image Credit (representational): MoR
