Modi Flags Off 9 Vande Bharats Across 11 States

The speed and scale of infrastructure development in the country is now matching the aspirations of the 1.4 billion Indians, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday as he flagged off nine Vande Bharat Express trains connecting religious and tourist destinations across 11 states.

Addressing the event virtually, the PM also hit out at previous governments for not paying adequate attention to the modernisation of railways. But, he said, the "day is not far when Vande Bharat will connect every part of the country".

"The speed and scale of infrastructure development are matching with the aspirations of 140 crore Indians. Today, people of Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, West Bengal, Kerala, Odisha, Jharkhand and Gujarat will get the facility of Vande Bharat Express trains. These new Vande Bharat Express trains depict the new energy of the country," PM Modi said.

The popularity of Vande Bharat trains is constantly rising and over 11,100,000 passengers have already travelled in them, he said.

"The Indian Railways is the most trusted co-passenger of India's poor and middle-class people. The number of people who travel in the railways in a day is more than the population of many countries," he said.

With the addition of the nine new trains, there are now 34 Vande Bharat trains across the country.

The announcement was not without political context. Of the 11 states, 10 - Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, West Bengal, Kerala, Odisha and Jharkhand are ruled by parties that are not from the BJPled National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Of these, Telangana and Rajasthan are expected to have assembly elections later this year.

"It is unfortunate that not much attention was given to modernise Indian railways. But now our government is working for the transformation of Indian railways," Modi said.