Vande Bharat trains' manufacturing to begin from October: Railway Minister

The Railways' target is to begin a regular production of Vande Bharat trains from October with manufacture of two to three trains per month, to five to eight in the coming months, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Friday.

The Railways has set a target of manufacturing 75 such trains by August 2023.

The newest train has completed all its trials and is ready to run commercially.

Sources said that it is likely to be run between Mumbai and Ahmedabad and will be officially launched later this month.

Addressing a press briefing, Vaishnaw said that the new train comes with much advanced features.

The third Vande Bharat train, which has completed its trials and is fit to be operated commercially, will zoom from 0-100 kmph in 52 seconds as compared to the earlier version which attained the same speed in 54.6 seconds.

He also said that the weight of the new train has been reduced by 38 tonnes, which has contributed to its faster acceleration.

So, the new train would reach a speed of 160 kmph in 130 seconds, while the older version did so in 146 seconds.

"We will now start its serial production... testing is complete... the target will be that going into October we can start regular production... 2-3 trains every month, then taking it up to 5 and 8," Vaishnaw said, adding that most of these trains will be manufactured in Integral Coach Factory, Chennai.

The new train will have more passenger comfort amenities. It will have a battery backup of three hours, with weight reduced from 430 tonne to 290 tonne. The ride index, an indication of riding comfort, has been increased to 3.2.

The minister said that the train will also have wifi-enabled content on demand, and will come equipped with 32-inch LCD TVs, an improvement on 24 inch in the earlier versions.

Fifteen per cent more energy efficient ACs with dust-free clean air cooling of the traction motor will make the travel more comfortable in the newer version, it has been said.

Side recliner seat facility which is being provided to Executive Class passengers, will now be made available for all classes.

In the new design of the train, a photo-catalytic ultraviolet air purification system is installed in the Roof Mounted Package Unit (RMPU) for air purification.

As recommended by the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO), Chandigarh, this system is designed and installed on both ends of RMPU to filter and clear the air of germs, bacteria, virus, etc.