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Vande Bharat Express was flagged off on Thursday, 3 October, by Home Minister Amit Shah, who said the train will be a ‘big gift’ for the development of Jammu and Kashmir and will also promote religious tourism.
After Shah showed a green flag to the train, he said “I'm proud that this made-in-India train is being flagged off from here today. The railway is working towards achieving its targets keeping in mind principles of speed, scale and service.”
The train travelling between Delhi to Katra will start its commercial run from 5 October.
The first Vande Bharat Express train was launched on the Delhi to Varanasi route and now the second train has been flagged off on the Delhi to Katra route.
The trains that used to run from Delhi to Katra took 12 hours to reach the destination, but now the Vande Bharat Express will reach Katra in eight hours, that is, it will take four hours less than the other train which makes it the fastest Indian train.
Vande Bharat Express (22439) will depart at 6 am in the morning and will arrive at Katra at 2 pm in the afternoon. Vande Bharat Express (22440) will depart from Katra on the same day at 3 pm in the afternoon and will reach Delhi at 11 pm. This superfast train will run six days a week. It won’t run on Tuesdays.
Vande Bharat Express will have three stops while travelling from Delhi to Katra which are Ambala, Ludhiana and Jammu Tawi. Vande Bharat Express will run on an average speed of 130 kilometres per hour, which makes it India’s fastest train. It consists of 16 coaches and 1,128 seats.
The ticket price from Delhi to Katra will be around Rs 1,630. This includes base fare of Rs 1,120, Rs 40 reservation charge and Rs 61 GST. It also includes catering charges worth Rs 364.
The ticket price for the executive chair car will be around Rs 3,015. It includes Rs 2,337 base fare, Rs 60 reservation charge, Rs 75 superfast charge and Rs 124 will be charged for GST. It also includes catering charges worth Rs 419.
People who want to travel from Delhi to Katra can reserve their seats online by visiting the official website of Indian Railway catering and tourism corporation at www.irctc.co.in
The Vande Bharat Express train running from Delhi to Varanasi has not kept any reservations for kids and elderly people, while the Delhi to Katra Vande Bharat Express has not released any information regarding the reservation for kids and elderly people.
For more information, check the official website of Indian Railway Department at www.irctc.co.in
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