Finance
India’s inaugural Vande Bharat sleeper train will run between Kolkata (Howrah) and Guwahati (Kamakhya), passing through nine districts in West Bengal and Assam, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi starting the service on January 20, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced Thursday.
Vaishnaw further stated that the first section of India’s first bullet train project, Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail, from Surat to Bilimora in Gujarat, will be completed by August 15, 2027. The entire project is projected to be completed by December 2029, he stated. Referring to the Vande Bharat sleeper service, Vaishnaw said, “It is a big milestone for the country. This year will be the year of reforms for the Indian Railways and Vande Bharat sleeper trains have the imprints of it. We got confidence from the Vande Bharat Chair Car train and implemented the learning in this. It is just the beginning,” Vaishnaw said.
Responding to a query on the inaugural route connecting two states bound for Assembly elections this year, the Union Minister said, “The decision was taken while keeping in mind the Purvodaya initiatives of the Government for the holistic development of the Northeast. Railways is making a conscious effort to extend the network with premium services to the region.”
The train will make ten stops in West Bengal’s nine districts of Howrah, Hooghly, Purba Bardhaman, Murshidabad, Malda, Jalpaiguri, and Cooch Behar, as well as Assam’s Kamrup Metropolitan and Bongaigaon. These will be overnight trains that begin in the late evening and terminate in the morning, with 16 coaches, including 11 3AC, four 2AC, and one 1AC.
“We wanted to keep the fare substantially lower than the flight. So, the fare for 3 tier will be Rs 2300, Rs 3000 for 2tier and Rs 3600 for 1Ac. There will be no dynamic pricing in the train. The train running from Guwahati will have Assamese (cuisine) and the train running from Kolkata will serve Bangla food,” Vaishnaw said.
He stated that eight Vande Bharat sleeper trains will be rolled out over the next six months, with 12 ready by the end of the year. He stated that a total of 200 Vande Bharat sleeper trains will be produced over the years. “A train has three most important systems — bogie, propulsion system and vehicle control. All these three things were designed in India. So it’s completely a made-in-India train. We are hoping to achieve perfection in this by 2029. After that, we will be in a position to export it. The total cost per coach of this train is Rs 8-8.5 crore, which is lower than a metro coach, which usually is Rs 10-10.5 crore,” said Vaishnaw, while listing the Railways’ export goals.
The Kolkata-Guwahati Vande Bharat sleeper has a total passenger capacity of 823, including 611 in 3AC, 188 in 2AC, and 24 in 1AC. The train can go at 180 kmph, but for safety concerns, it will only go up to 130 kmph on this service.
Other features include ergonomically built sleepers with better cushioning, automatic doors with vestibules for smoother movement, improved ride comfort with superior suspension, and noise reduction.
The train is equipped with an automatic train protection system, Kavach, as well as an emergency talkback system. It has disinfection technology for sanitation, a driver cab with modern controls and an aerodynamic design, and automatic external passenger doors.
On December 30, 2025, the train performed its final high-speed trial under the supervision of the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS). Before a new train may be operated, CRS, a railway safety organization, must approve it.
The trial was held on the Kota-Nagda stretch, during which the train reached a top speed of 180 kmph and technical evaluations such as ride stability, oscillation, vibration behavior, braking capability, and so on were carried out.
