MARGAO: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the Madgaon-Mumbai-Madgaon
Vande Bharat semi high-speed train from Margao railway station through video conferencing from Rani Kamalapati railway station in Madhya Pradesh.
The inaugural run of the eight coach rake that was to be held earlier this month from Margao was deferred following the major train accident at Balasore in Odisha.
The trial run of the train was held last month during which it clocked the distance between Mumbai and Goa in just seven hours.
A Vande Bharat rake is capable of running at the top speed of 180 kmph.
However, with the monsoon time table having kicked in and with speed restrictions in force, the train is expected to take around 10 hours to reach its destination, sources in the Railways said.
Governor Sreedharan Pillai, chief minister Pramod Sawant, Union minister of state for tourism Shripad Naik, and tourism minister Rohan Khaunte will be present for the inaugural function to be held at the Margao railway station on Tuesday. Union minister for food and civil supplies Ravindra Chavan will also be present.
Modi will also flag off four other Vande Bharat trains on Tuesday – Dharwad-Bengaluru, Ranchi-Patna, Rani Kamalapati-Jabalpur and Rani Kamalapati-Indore.
The Vande Bharat Express is an electric multiple-unit train operated by Indian Railways. Currently, three Vande Bharat Express trains operate between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Solapur and Mumbai and Shirdi.
The Railways expects the Vande Bharat Express train to become popular among the frequent travellers on Mumbai-Goa route, particularly from the Konkan region, which witnesses heavy rush throughout the year, sources said.
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