'Built for the middle-class': Ashwini Vaishnaw unveils prototype of Vande Bharat sleeper trains

Made at BEML Bengaluru, these trains will be ideal for 800-1,200-km journeys; passenger ops start in 3 months.

Bengaluru: Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday unveiled the prototype of the Vande Bharat sleeper trains, which are designed to transform overnight rail journeys. 

The event was held at the Bengaluru plant of BEML Limited, the PSU that has secured a contract from the Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai, to design, manufacture and supply the Vande Bharat sleeper trainsets. 

Designed for a maximum operational speed of 160 kmph during service, the sleeper train has 16 coaches — 11 three-tier AC, 4 two-tier and one one-tier AC coaches  — with a total of  823 berths.

In the next 10-12 days, the prototype train will be transported to the ICF Chennai, where it will undergo extensive testing, including oscillation trials, before being tested on the mainline. The trials will take around two months. Once the train passes statutory clearances, including from the Research Designs and Standards Organisations (RDSO) and the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS), it will be deployed for commercial operations in the next three months.

Addressing a packed press conference at the BEML manufacturing facility here, Vaishnaw said the Vande Bharat sleeper trains were packed with features and designed for middle-class families. Their fares will be reasonable and benchmarked against those of the Rajdhani Express, he added. 

The Rajdhani Express, which connects Delhi with state capitals, has dynamic fares that fluctuate depending on the number of seats booked.

"The prototype train will be ready for despatch in the next 10-12 days. Thereafter, it will undergo testing, which will entail a lot of documentation. All this will take one and a half to two months. Passenger operations will start in about three months," he said.

Vaishnaw emphasised that the Vande Bharat sleeper trains would be ideal for distances of 800-1,200 km. Travellers can start their journey at 9 pm or 10 pm and reach their destination in the morning, he added. 

According to the minister, the Vande Bharat sleeper trains will be designed in the configurations of four, meaning they will run as four-, eight-, 12-, 16-, 20-, or 24-coach trainsets based on demand. 

A BEML engineer said that currently units 2 and 4 (totalling eight coaches) were fully ready while units 1 and 3 (the remaining eight coaches) were still undergoing some finishing works. 

DH found that electrical installations and bathroom fittings were still ongoing in some of the coaches. 

Vaishnaw said the Vande Bharat, Vande Bharat Sleeper, Vande Metro and Amrit Bharat trains would change the way people travel, providing "significant improvement in travel quality" to cater to the new India.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw while unveiling the prototype of the Vande Bharat sleeper trains in Bengaluru.

The railway minister also spoke at length about the process of designing and manufacturing the Vande Bharat sleeper trains, describing it as a "long and complex journey". 

"There were a lot of things to do, including car body stability, under-frame integration, integrating electricals with electronics, power train stability, special passenger amenities, new-generation seats, berth materials, toilets, air-conditioning and so on," he said. 

He explained that a lot of care had been taken to maintain oxygen levels in the coaches and prevent viruses. The train also boasts scientific temperature/humidity control measures and newly designed toilets. There will be a pantry in every coach, while attendants and those supplying linen and food have been provided with special facilities. The loco pilots' cabins will be air-conditioned, ergonomically designed, and have toilets, he explained. 

Answering a question about the Vande Metro trains, which will serve cities placed 100-200 km apart, Vaishnaw said two trains were ready and passed the necessary tests. The first train will be launched in the next month, he added. Full-scale production will start in one and a half years, and multiple trains will be delivered every month thereafter.

'Serious action over bad food'

Asked about the quality of food served on trains, Vaishnaw said the railways served 12-13 lakh meals per day, and the complaints about bad food constituted a mere 0.01 per cent. "We are serious about every complaint and have taken strong action against caterers and suppliers," he said. 

The minister accused the erstwhile Congress-led governments of "neglecting and politicising the railways for a very long period". "We are getting to the root cause of the problems (in the railways) and making structural changes. What the Congress/UPA should have done years ago is being done now," he said. 

Vaishnaw also laid the foundation stone for a new 9.2-acre hangar facility dedicated to the export of standard and broad-gauge rolling stock, according to BEML. 

Minister of State for Railways V Somanna; Chairman and CEO of the Railway Board, Satish Kumar; Chairman and Managing Director of BEML Shantanu Roy, and senior officials from the Indian Railways and the ICF were also present on the occasion.

What's new in the Vande Bharat sleeper trains?

The Vande Bharat sleeper trains come with the following special features: 

• Integrated reading lights with USB charging ports

• Public announcement and visual information systems

• Interior display panels and security cameras

• Modular pantries and specially designed berths and toilets for differently-abled passengers

• Showers with hot water in the first-class AC coaches

• Crash-worthy features for passenger safety

• Best-in-class interiors with GFRP panels

• Aerodynamic exterior looks

• Automatic exterior passenger doors

• Sensor-based inter-communication doors

• Remotely-operated fire-barrier doors at end walls

• Ergonomically designed odour-free toilets

• Spacious luggage room

• Mobile phone and magazine/newspaper holder.

The trainset features austenitic stainless-steel construction and is equipped with advanced crashworthy elements, such as specially designed crash buffers and couplers, to maximise passenger safety. All materials and components used in the trainset meet the stringent EN45545 HL3 grade requirements, according to BEML.