Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the north corridor of the bullet train project, which will connect Delhi with several cities across northern and eastern India.
He said the project would significantly reduce travel time and improve connectivity for passengers, including students, business owners and people travelling for medical treatment.
Speaking in Varanasi before flagging off the Vande Bharat Sleeper Express services between Banaras and New Delhi, Vaishnaw said the proposed corridor would connect Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow, Ayodhya, Varanasi, Prayagraj and Patna, extending further towards Siliguri and Guwahati.
Proposed travel times across the corridor
The minister shared the proposed travel times between several cities, saying the journey from Delhi to Agra would take 59 minutes, while passengers would be able to reach Kanpur from Delhi in one hour and 45 minutes. The journey between Delhi and Lucknow would take around two hours and 12 minutes.
According to Vaishnaw, travel between Lucknow and Varanasi would take one hour and 21 minutes, while the journey from Varanasi to Patna would take about an hour. The proposed travel time between Varanasi and Prayagraj would be 33 minutes and between Varanasi and Agra around two hours and 34 minutes.
The minister said the Varanasi-Delhi journey would take approximately three hours and 33 minutes, and bullet trains would operate at one-hour intervals, providing passengers with more frequent travel options. If executed, the duration from Delhi to Guwahati will come down to 8 hours, reportedly.
Northeast welcomes the Guwahati extension
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for extending the proposed north bullet train corridor to Guwahati from Siliguri.
He said the extension followed his request to Vaishnaw in July and would improve connectivity, boost high-tech industries and create opportunities for businesses and livelihoods in the Northeast.
Vande Bharat Sleeper and Make in India model
Vaishnaw also spoke about the newly launched Vande Bharat Sleeper Express services between Banaras and New Delhi, describing the train as a modern transport facility aimed at middle-class passengers. He said the train would depart from Delhi every evening, while a corresponding service would leave Banaras every evening, equipped with modern amenities and built using advanced technology.
The Railway Minister said the north corridor would be developed under the Make in India initiative, with key components manufactured domestically. He said the design phase for the corridor was currently underway and that construction components, including pillars and girders, would be standardised and factory-made.
He also said the first section of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor was expected to open next year. The minister said the proposed network would benefit middle-class families, small business owners, micro, small and medium enterprises, students and people travelling for healthcare, and create opportunities for young people and workers involved in manufacturing and construction. However, the project is currently in the design phase, and further details on its construction timeline and implementation are awaited.
