PM Modi to flag off Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off Odisha’s first and West Bengal’s second Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat train from Puri at around 1 pm on Thursday via video conferencing. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw will also be present at the event.

The train will cover the 500 km distance between Howrah and Puri in around 6 hours and 30 minutes, reducing the time by over an hour as compared to the current Shatabdi Express which takes 7 hours and 35 minutes to cover the same distance.

The train will have 16 coaches. It will pass through Khordha, Cuttack, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balasore districts in Odisha and Paschim Medinipur, Purba Medinipur districts in West Bengal.
The new train will run six days a week except Thursdays. It will depart Howrah at 6.10 am and reach Puri at 12.35 pm. In the return direction, it will leave Puri at 1.50 pm and arrive at Howrah at 8.30 pm.
As per the reports, the price will be Rs 1,590 for Chair Car and Rs 2,815 for the executive class.
With Puri being a very popular destination for tourists from West Bengal and its surroundings as both a pilgrimage and a beach resort town, the semi-high-speed train is likely to be an instant hit among travellers.
This is the second Vande Bharat Express that West Bengal is getting after the one that runs between Howrah and New Jalpaiguri.
The regular run of the 22895/22896 Howrah-Puri-Howrah Vande Bharat Express will commence from May 20.
PM Modi to dedicate other railway projects worth Rs 8000 crores
Prime Minister Modi will also lay the foundation stone and dedicate several railway projects worth more than Rs 8000 crores in Odisha today at around 12:30 pm via video conferencing. The Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for redeveloping Puri and Cuttack railway stations so that passengers can get all modern amenities in future. The redeveloped stations will have all modern amenities providing a world-class experience to the rail passengers.

He will also dedicate 100 per cent electrification of the rail network in Odisha. This will reduce the operating and maintenance cost and reduce reliance on imported crude oil.

PM Modi is also scheduled to dedicate the doubling of the Sambalpur-Titlagarh rail line, a new broad gauge rail line between Angul and Sukinda, the third line connecting Manoharpur-Rourkela-Jharsuguda-Jamga and a new broad-gauge line between Bichhupali and Jhartarbha. These will cater to the increased traffic demands as a result of rapid industrial development in the steel, power & mining sectors in Odisha and will also help ease the pressure on passenger traffic in these rail sections.