PM Narendra Modi flagged of the newest Vande Bharat Express on Monday virtually. This new train will connect Guwahati in Assam to New Japlaiguri in West Bengal. And is expected to be very beneficial for the travellers between these two key destinations.
The new train will be running on six days every week except on Tuesdays. There will be two categories of seats in the new Vande Bharat express. These are AC Chair Car (CC) and Executive AC Chair Car (EC). The fare from Guwahati to New Jalpaiguri is Rs 1225 for CC and Rs 2205 for EC. For the return trip, the fare is Rs 1075 for CC and 2025 for EC.
The distance will be covered in five and a half hours. This is one hour lesser than the Rajdhani Express, which the current fastest train on the route. After leaving from Guwahati, it will stop at Kamakhya, New Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar, New Alipur Duar and New Cooch Bihar before concluding the journey at New Jalpaiguri. It leaves from Guwahati at 4:30 PM to reach New Jalpaiguri at 10 PM. And it leaves New Jalpaiguri at 6:10 AM to reach Guwahati at 11:40 AM.
The Prime Minister was connected to the event via teleconferencing. While several key leaders including the central ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and Sarbananda Sonowal were present in the event organised at the Guwahati Railway Station. Assam Governor Gulab Chand Kataria and Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also attended the event.
This new semi-high-speed train is expected to give a boost to several sectors of the region. Tourism being one of the biggest benefactor of this train. New Jalpaiguri is the gateway to the state of Sikkim and also has connectivity to neighbouring Nepal. And Guwahati is the gateway to the entire Northreat Indian region with connectivity to the rest of the states. Apart from tourism, education, trade and employment opportunities are also expected to increase.
