"A new flight to middle class,": PM Modi flags off Vande Bharat Express in UP's Gorakhpur

Gorakhpur: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday flagged off Vande Bharat Express train in Gorakhpur and said that leaders from across the country are requesting Vande Bharat trains to be run from their region.

"...Vande Bharat train has given a new flight to the middle class of the country with facilities and amenities. Today, leaders from every corner of the country are writing letters to me asking that Vande Bharat be run from our region as well...", PM Narendra Modi said as he termed Vande Bharat as a boon to middle class society. Gorakhpur, UP: Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, CEO, Railway Board on Vande Bharat train said, "...The timing of this train is convenient. This train will save two hours as compared to the fastest train on this route..."

PM Modi was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and state Governor Anandiben Patel. The Prime Minister flagged off Gorakhpur - Lucknow Vande Bharat Express.

Gorakhpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat Express will connect the city of Baba Gorakhnath to the city of Lord Ram, Ayodhya and the city of Nawabs, Lucknow. Also, tourist places like Kushinagar, Siddharthnagar Sant Kabir Nagar, a town of the 15th-century mystic poet 'Kabir', will benefit from improved connectivity.

The forthcoming blue-and-white Gorakhpur-Lucknow Vande Bharat Express is a semi-high-speed train that would create a crucial link between the cities of Gorakhpur, also known as Baba Gorakhnath's city, and Lucknow, also known as the city of Nawabs.The state's first miniature version of the semi-high-speed train will have eight coaches, including seven with air conditioning and one with an executive chair car.

The Jodhpur-Sabarmati Vande Bharat Express will improve the connectivity between Rajputana and Ahmedabad, a City of Mahatma Gandhi. The train will connect Pali, Abu Road, Palanpur and Mehsana cities on the route. This will benefit the important tourist sites in the historic cities of Jodhpur and Ahmedabad.

The first Vande Bharat Express was flagged off on February 15, 2019, by the Prime Minister, running between New Delhi and Varanasi. Manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai, the train set symbolizes the 'Make-In-India' initiative and showcases India's engineering prowess.

The project to manufacture indigenous semi-high-speed train sets began in mid-2017, and within 18 months, the ICF Chennai completed Train-18. India's first semi-high-speed train was renamed Vande Bharat Express in January 2019 to emphasize its made-in-India status. The train achieved a maximum speed of 180 kmph on the Kota-Sawai Madhopur section.