PM Narendra Modi virtually flagged off the Howrah-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express from Ahmedabad today (December 30). Prime Minister Modi virtually flagged off the seventh Vande Bharat Express train in the presence of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Governor CV Anand Bose and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav were also present on the occasion.
The Vande Bharat Express will connect Howrah and New Jalpaiguri, the gateway to the Northeast. Officials said the blue-and-white train, which covers the distance of 564 km in 7.45 hours, will save three hours in travel time as compared to other trains on the route. Its three stoppages will be Barsoi, Malda and Bolpur.
With modern passenger amenities, the Vande Bharat Express is likely to be liked by both regular commuters, tea industry executives and tourists traveling to the Himalayas in North Bengal and Sikkim.
The state-of-the-art train has 16 coaches including two for the drivers.
with PTI inputs