News Brief
PM Modi Flags Off Vande Bharat Trains On Three New Routes In UP, Tamil Nadu And Karnataka
New Vande Bharat train
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (31 August) flagged off three Vande Bharat trains via video conferencing.
The state-of-the-art Vande Bharat Express trains will operate on three routes: Meerut—Lucknow, Madurai—Bengaluru, and Chennai—Nagercoil.
These trains will boost connectivity in Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
On the occasion, the Prime Minister said that a new chapter is being written in the development journey of India from the North to the South as Madurai—Bengaluru, Chennai—Nagercoil and Meerut—Lucknow Vande Bharat trains are being flagged off today.
PM Modi underlined that the nation is inching towards the goal of Vikist Bharat with the modernisation and expansion of Vande Bharat trains in the country.
Referring to the three new Vande Bharat trains, he said that these have provided connectivity to important cities as well as historic towns in the country.
“Temple City Madurai is now connected with IT City Bengaluru”, PM Modi said, adding that this would not only ease connectivity, especially during the weekends or festive period but also be very beneficial for pilgrims.
The Chennai—Nagercoil route would hugely benefit students, farmers and IT professionals, he said.
PM Modi noted the growth of tourism in places connected to Vande Bharat trains and said that it signifies the growth of businesses and employment opportunities in the region.
“Southern India is the land of immense talent, resources and opportunities," PM Modi remarked, noting that the development of Tamil Nadu along with the entire Southern India is the government’s priority.
He informed that more than Rs 6000 crore has been allocated for Tamil Nadu’s rail budget this year, seven times more than in 2014.
He further added that the total number of Vande Bharat trains in Tamil Nadu would go up to 8 after today.
Similarly, a budget of more than Rs 7,000 crore has been allocated for Karnataka in this year’s Budget which is nine times more than in 2014.
Eight Vande Bharat Trains are connecting Karnataka today, he added.
Highlighting the introduction of the new Vande Bharat train on the Meerut-Lucknow route, PM Modi said that the region of Meerut and western Uttar Pradesh, the land of revolution, was today witnessing a new revolution of development.
The Prime Minister underlined that while RRTS has helped connect Meerut with the national capital New Delhi, now the distance to the state capital Lucknow has also been reduced with the introduction of Vande Bharat.
