Indian Railways has announced plans in the next few years to manufacture 8,000 Vande Bharat coaches to modernize and expand its train service. As a result of their efficiency and comfort, these semi-high-speed trainsets have gained popularity. Read SURFACES REPORTER (SR)’s complete report below:
Indian Railways is moving ahead with a plan to construct 8,000 Vande Bharat coaches. These semi-high-speed trainsets are renowned for their efficiency and comfort and will be reintroduced. Each Express usually has 16 coaches but can be reduced to 8 if necessary.
The Ministry of Railways has recently given the go-ahead to a new coach production program; two-thirds of these will be acquired from industry partners with existing production and maintenance agreements.
Design and Cost of Vande Bharat's State-of-the-Art Coaches
The Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai, has been directed to call tenders for 3200 Vande Bharat coaches. The Railways ministry is aiming to complete the task of producing these new trainsets by 2030-31, with an exponential increase in production this financial year alone -- from 25 to 75 coaches -- and a 16-coach trainset costing Rs 130 crore.
ICF will be responsible for 1600 of these coaches with MCF-Raebareli and RCF-Kapurthala taking on the remaining workload. Aiming for 700 coaches this year, the expectation is that 1000 will be produced 2024-25.
Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw previously revealed that a sleeper version of the Vande Bharat is going to be introduced by early next year. Unlike the current model, which is suitable for journeys of up to 500 km, the sleeper adaptation is ideal for longer trips similar to Rajdhani trains. Officials are anticipating a future were only Vande and LHB (Linke Hofmann Busch) coaches are used; they are working towards eliminating older ICF-variety coaches.
Makers of Vande Bharat Sleeper
TMH, a Russian rolling-stock manufacturer, will manufacture 120 Vande Bharats, including sleeper models, in partnership with Rail Vikas Nigam Limited. Additionally, BHEL has been awarded a contract to manufacture 80 coaches of the same variant. Additionally, Alstom will manufacture 100 Vande Bharat trains equipped with aluminum bodies.