Lok Sabha Question No. 3045 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-11
Subject: Vande Bharat Sleeper Trains between Kolkata and Guwahati
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Thiru Thanga Tamilselvan, Dr. Ganapathy Rajkumar P

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## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3045 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.03.2026

## VANDE BHARAT SLEEPER TRAINS BETWEEN KOLKATA AND GUWAHATI

3045. THIRU THANGA TAMILSELVAN: DR. GANAPATHY RAJKUMAR P:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether it is true that India's first Vande Bharat Sleeper Train between Kolkata and Guwahati has been flagged off recently and the fares of the Vande  Bharat  Sleeper  Train  between  Howrah  in  West  Bengal  and Guwahati in Assam will be substantially lower than air travel and if so,
- the details thereof; and
- (b) whether the Government has any proposal to ply/introduce such a Vande Bharat Sleeper Train between Delhi and Chennai in coming days and if so, the details along with the timeline thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND

## ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) and  (b)  For  long  distance  travel  the  Sleeper  variant  of  Vande  Bharat Express has been indigenously designed and developed. Two such trains have already been manufactured. After extensive trials, these trains have been introduced on Indian Railways. The First Vande Bharat Sleeper service viz.  27575/27576  Howrah-  Kamakhya  Vande  Bharat  Sleeper  Express  has commenced regular operation w.e.f. 22.01.2026.

The  process  of  development  of  new  rolling  stocks  like  Vande  Sleeper necessitates  a  holistic  approach,  combining  technological  innovation, strategic  planning  and  manufacturing  to  ensure  a  safe,  reliable  and comfortable  travel.  This  involves  development  of  prototype,  extensive testing and trials followed by series production.

To improve travel experience of the passengers and set new benchmarks in terms of safe and comfortable journey, these train sets have been provided with  modern  coaches  having  advanced  safety  features  and  passenger amenities like:

- Jerk-Free Semi permanent couplers and Anti Climbers.
- Fitted with KAVACH
- Higher acceleration with design/operating speed of 180/160 KMPH
- Crashworthy Design of Car body complying with EN standards.
- Fire barrier doors at the end of each coach for compliance of fire safety standards.
- Improved fire  safety  -  Aerosol  based  fire  detection  and  suppression system in electrical cabinets and lavatories.
- Regenerative braking system for energy efficiency.
- Air conditioning units provided with indigenously developed UV-C lampbased disinfection system for deactivating 99% harmful bacteria from conditioned air to improve the hygiene standards inside the passenger area.
- Centrally  controlled  Automatic  Plug  Doors  and  Fully  Sealed  wider gangways CCTVs in all coaches.
- Emergency talk-back unit for communication between Passenger and Train Manager/Loco Pilot in case of emergency.
- For Divyangjan passengers, special lavatory in the driving coaches on each end.
- Centralized Coach Monitoring System for better condition monitoring of passenger amenities such as Air conditioning, Saloon Lighting etc.
- Ergonomically designed ladder for ease of climbing on to upper berths.

Presently, Delhi-Chennai sector is served by 10 pairs of train services as

## listed below:

| SNTrain number and name                       | SNTrain number and name                                                        |
|-----------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| 1                                             | 12641/12642 Kanniyakumari -Hazrat Nizamuddin Thirukkural Express               |
| 2                                             | 12651/12652 Madurai -Hazrat Nizamuddin Tamil Nadu Sampark Kranti Express       |
| 3                                             | 16031/16032 MGR Chennai Central - Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Andaman Express |
| 4                                             | 20493/20494 Madurai - Chandigarh Express                                       |
| 5                                             | 12433/12434 MGR Chennai Central - Hazrat Nizamuddin Rajdhani Express           |
| 6                                             | 12611/12612 MGR Chennai Central - Hazrat Nizamuddin Garib Rath Express         |
| 7                                             | 12269/12270 MGR Chennai Central - Hazrat Nizamuddin Duronto Express            |
| 8                                             | 12615/12616 MGR Chennai Central -New Delhi Grand Trunk Express                 |
| 9                                             | 12621/12622 MGR Chennai Central -New Delhi Tamil Nadu Express                  |
| 10 22403/22404 Puducherry - New Delhi Express | 10 22403/22404 Puducherry - New Delhi Express                                  |

Besides, introduction of new train services, including Vande Bharat sleeper services, is an on-going process, depends on various factors which include-

- Capacity of that section
- Availability of path
- Availability of required rolling stock
- Availability of matching infrastructure for rolling stock
- Maintenance requirement of railway tracks and other assets.
- Occupancy and the traffic requirement of the section.

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