Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday flagged off the inaugural run of the Vande Bharat Sleeper Express connecting Bengaluru and Mumbai, strengthening overnight rail connectivity between the two major metropolitan cities.
Officials said the inaugural special train, comprising a 16-coach Vande Bharat Sleeper rake that departed from Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT), Bengaluru, is scheduled to reach Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT), Mumbai, at 6.15 am on Monday.
Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi, H D Kumaraswamy, Ministers of State V Somanna and Shobha Karandlaje, Members of Parliament Tejasvi Surya, P C Mohan and C N Manjunath, among others were present. Also Read I Yogi, railway minister flag off UP’s first Vande Bharat sleeper train from Varanasi South Western Railway said the train’s regular services will commence from November 2 in the Mumbai-Bengaluru direction and November 3 in the return direction.
South Western Railway said the new service is expected to provide passengers with a comfortable overnight travel option while improving connectivity between Karnataka and Maharashtra.
