A man died after being hit by Vande Bharat Express train which was en route to Delhi from Varanasi on Tuesday.
The incident occurred near Tundla in Uttar Pradesh between Jalesar and Pora.
Earlier today, PM Modi flagged off five Vande Bharat Express trains connecting important cities in different parts of the country, including tourist towns, adding to the growing list of the much sought after semi high-speed trains.
Two of these trains were for the BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh, where Assembly polls are due by the year-end.
Modi reached Rani Kamalapati railway station in the state capital Bhopal from where he flagged off the five trains – two physically and three in virtual mode — covering half a dozen states with Goa, Bihar and Jharkhand getting their first such service.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, Madhya Pradesh Governor Mangubhai Patel, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union ministers Narendra Singh Tomar and Jyotiraditya Scindia, among others, were present on the occasion.
Before flagging off the blue and white colour ultra modern trains equipped with advanced features, Modi interacted with students onboard one of them and also its staff.
“These trains will improve connectivity in Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, Bihar and Jharkhand,” Modi said in a tweet on Monday.
This is for the first time so many Vande Bharat trains have been launched in one day. These semi high-speed trains are: Rani Kamalapati (Bhopal)-Jabalpur Vande Bharat Express, Bhopal-Indore Vande Bharat Express, Madgaon (Goa)-Mumbai Vande Bharat Express, Dharwad-Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express, and Hatia-Patna Vande Bharat Express, as per an official statement.
The Rani Kamalapati-Jabalpur Vande Bharat Express will connect Mahakaushal region (Jabalpur) to the central region (Bhopal) of Madhya Pradesh.
Tourist places like Bheraghat, Pachmarhi and Satpura, will also be benefitted by the improved connectivity, a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) earlier said. The train will be about 30 minutes faster than the existing fastest train on the route, it said.
The Bhopal-Indore Vande Bharat Express will improve connectivity of the Malwa region (Indore) to the Central region (Bhopal), the statement said. It will benefit important tourist sites like Mahakaleshwar, Mandu and Maheshwar. The train will be about two hours and 30 minutes faster than the existing fastest train on the route, it said.
The Madgaon (Goa)-Mumbai (CSMT) Vande Bharat Express is first such train for Goa, a popular tourist destination. It will help save about an hour as compared to the current fastest train connecting the two places, the statement said.
The Dharwad-Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express will connect important cities in Karnataka — Dharwad, Hubballi and Davangere — with the state capital Bengaluru.
It will immensely benefit tourists, students and industrialists, etc in the region and will be about 30 minutes faster than the existing fastest train on the route, the statement said. The Hatia-Patna Vande Bharat Express is the first such train for Jharkhand and Bihar.
Enhancing connectivity between Patna and Ranchi, the train will be a boon for tourists, students and businessmen, the statement said.
Compared to the current fastest train connecting the two places, the Hatia-Patna Vande Bharat Express will help save about one hour and 25 minutes of the journey time, it said.
Before flagging off the trains, Modi interacted with students onboard one of them and spoke to them about India’s development and achievements. Schoolchildren gifted Modi paintings reflecting India’s growing influence in the world. A handmade portrait of the prime minister was also presented to him by students, an official release said.
Earlier, after arriving at the Bhopal airport in the morning, Modi was scheduled to reach the Rani Kamalapati railway station by a helicopter, but because of bad weather he left for the venue by road, state BJP media in-charge Ashish Agrawal said.
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