Guwahati: Passengers boarding Vande Bharat Express from Guwahati railway station will reach their destination in New Jalpaiguri (NJP) in 5 hours and 30 minutes at a speed of 110 kmph. The speed of other Vande Bharat Express trains that have already been flagged off in other States across the country, is around 130 kmph.
"The speed of the Guwahati-NJP Vande Bharat Express train has been kept to 110 kmph following the fact that the 411 km stretch is sensitive. We have so many rivers and bridges along this stretch of Guwahati -NJP route that connects Assam with West Bengal," said the pilot of Vande Bharat Express to ETV Bharat in an exclusive interview. He said that the speed of the trains may also increase in the future.
Vande Bharat Express train runs as a self-propelled semi-high-speed train set. The train set is equipped with a centralised coach monitoring and control system. "The train is the fastest short distance train with eight coach chair car configuration. It has a seating capacity of 530 passengers with maximum utilisation of onboard space," Nilanjan Deb, public relation officer of Northeast Frontier Railway told to ETV Bharat.
Also read: PM Modi to virtually flag off Assam's first 'Vande Bharat Express' today
The executive chair cars in the train have a seating capacity of 52 each, normal chair cars have a seating capacity of 78 each and the driving trailer coaches have a seating capacity of 44 each. Interestingly, bogies are equipped with fully suspended traction motors for 160 kmph operational speed.
The train is equipped with 'Kavach,' the indigenously developed train collision advance system with optimum reliability. "It's a big day for us, as we believe that Vande Bharat Express will not only promote tourism and improve the communication system, the train will also help the students, who are staying either in Assam or north Bengal," said a scout and guide volunteer.
Echoing the same view, Pralay Banerjee, an athlete based in Cooch Bihar, said that Vande Bharat Express will be helpful for sports persons living in Assam and north Bengal. "It will be helpful for those who need to reach for any training or tournament within a short period," said Banerjee.
Banerjee and his friends were traveling in the Vande Bharat Express that was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi from New Delhi via video conferencing. The seat executive coaches of the Vande Bharat Express have the added feature of 180° rotating seats. CCTV is also installed in all the coaches for safety purposes. Along with emergency lightning provided in every coach to act as a buffer in case of electrical failure, every coach of Vande Bharat Express is equipped with mini pantry cars.
