| Introduction: What are Vande Bharat trains Body: Significance of Vande Bharat trains Conclusion: Conclude with a short note |
Vande Bharat Trains also referred to as Train 18 is a semi-high-speed, self-propelled train conceptualised, designed and manufactured by Integral Coach Factory. The first train of Vande Bharat was flagged off by PM Modi in 2019 between Delhi and Varanasi. During the Union Budget 2022, the government set the target of manufacturing 400 trains over the next three years. As of May 2023, 18 Vande Bharat trains are running in India.
What is the significance of Vande Bharat in India’s infrastructure:
- Enhanced Connectivity: Vande Bharat Trains aim at improving connectivity and reducing travel time between major cities and regions. Such enhanced connectivity leads to growth in tourism, increase in economic growth and connecting people from different parts of the country.
- Faster speed: These trains are designed to run at 160km/hr which reduces travel time considerably and leads to faster movement of goods and people across the country. The railway is looking to increase the speed to 250km/hr.
- Continuous upgradation: The trains will be having better seating arrangements, an anti-bacterial system in AC, and less noise which will make the ride user-friendly and comfortable. There is a further plan to upgrade sitting coaches to sleeper coaches.
- Make in India: The trains are manufactured in India with indigenous technology, reducing import dependence. It highlights the country’s vision to make India’s railway infrastructure globally competitive with the best state of the art.
- Professionalism: The completion of the project in record time highlights the professionalism and teamwork of Integral Coach Factory. This will help in building a more professional attitude of the bureaucrats to execute the project in the stipulated time.
- Energy and Cost efficient: Specific energy consumption of Vande Bharat trains is comparatively less than those of other conventional trains. The cost of Vande Bharat is also less as compared to its counterparts in other developed countries.
- Employment: it is widely estimated that manufacturing 400 trains would create additional employment of around 10,500- 50000 jobs.
Conclusion:
The project of modernization should be replicated in conventional trains also at par with Vande Bharat trains which would lead to enhanced connectivity, employment generation and indigenous manufacturing capabilities.
