'Railway budget for northeast under Modi govt increased to ₹10,200 cr': Ashwini Vaishnaw
1 min read 29 May 2023, 02:44 PM ISTThe first Vande Bharat Express train for the northeast, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will connect Guwahati in Assam to New Jalpaiguri in West Bengal.
PremiumUnion Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Monday said that the allocation for railways for the northeast has increased to ₹10,200 crore under the Narendra Modi government, which was earlier ₹2,000 crore for the region.
Speaking to media persons at the Guwahati railway station before the launch of the Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express, he said that by June, all states where electrification of routes has been done, will have the semi-high speed service.
“These indigenously manufactured trains are being prepped to replace Shatabdis, Rajdhanis and local trains," the minister said as quoted by PTI.
The first Vande Bharat train for the northeast will connect Guwahati in Assam to New Jalpaiguri in West Bengal. The train, the 18th in the series, was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi via videoconferencing.
"Fifteen to 20 years ago, whatever good things used to happen used to go to the big cities, these took time to reach the northeast. However, after the Modi government came to power, it changed the mindset and, for the northeast, Look East was transformed into Act East," the minister said.
He highlighted that before 2014, the allocation for the railways for the northeast was ₹2,000 crore, PTI reported.
The Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat aims to provide the people of the region the means to travel with speed and comfort as well as boost tourism in the region, according to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office.
The latest Vande Bharat will help save about an hour of journey time, compared to the current fastest train connecting Guwahati and New Jalpaiguri. It will cover the journey in five-and-a-half hours while the current fastest train takes about six-and-a-half hours to cover the distance, the statement added.
Vaishnaw added that the number of telecom towers in the northeast has increased from 20,000 to 1 lakh in the nine years of the Modi government.
(With PTI inputs)
