Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday flagged off the much-awaited Howrah-Puri Vande Bharat Express at the Puri railway station through videoconferencing. This is the first Vande Bharat Express to run in Odisha.
The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of/ inaugurated several railway projects worth over Rs 8,000 crore in Odisha.
The event was attended by Odisha Governor Prof Ganeshi Lal, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and Union Minister for Education Dharmendra Pradhan. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik also joined the event via videoconferencing.
Speaking on the occasion, Modi said, “People of Odisha and West Bengal are getting the gift of Vande Bharat train today. Vande Bharat Express is a symbol of modern India and aspirational Indians. When Vande Bharat travels from one place to another place, it represents the pace of progress of India.”
Thanking Modi, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said, “It is a matter of delight that the Vande Bharat Express between Puri and Howrah was launched by the Prime Minister.”
The semi-high-speed train comprising 16 coaches will run six days a week (except Thursday). The train will halt at six stations between Howrah and Puri – Kharagpur, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Keonjhar Road, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, and Khurda Road. Each of these stoppages will be for two minutes.
The train will leave Howrah at 6.10 am and reach Puri at 12.35 pm. On its return journey, the Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will leave Puri at 1.50 pm and reach Howrah at 8.30 pm.
Tickets for the Howrah-Puri Vande Bharat Express can be booked on IRCTC’s website www.irctc.co.in for the journey on May 20 onwards.
The tickets for travel by Howrah-Puri Vande Bharat Express have been priced as below:
Howrah to Puri (AC Chair Car): Rs 1265 including catering charge of Rs 162.
Howrah to Puri (Executive Chair Car): Rs 2420 including a catering charge of Rs 195.
The catering charge will not be added to the fare if a passenger opts for the ‘No Food’ option.
The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for redeveloping Puri and Cuttack railway stations. These redeveloped stations will include all modern amenities providing a world-class experience to the rail commuters.
Modi also dedicated the doubling of the Sambalpur-Titlagarh rail line; a new broad gauge rail line between Angul-Sukinda; the third line connecting Manoharpur-Rourkela-Jharsuguda-Jamga and a new broad-gauge line between Bichhupali-Jhartarbha.
