Indian Railways will begin operating the eighteenth Vande Bharat Express on Monday, 29 May.
This will be the first Vande Bharat Express to operate in Assam and also in India's Northeast part.
The train will operate from Guwahati in Assam to New Jalpaiguri(NJP) in West Bengal.
This will be West Bengal's third Vande Bharat, following the Howrah-NJP Vande Bharat Express and the Howrah-Puri Vande Bharat Express.
Except on Tuesday, the train will run six days a week.
The Guwahati-New Jalpaiguri Vande Bharat Express will travel from Guwahati to New Jalpaiguri in 5 hours and 30 minutes, while the current fastest train (Dibrugarh-New Delhi Rajdhani Express) takes 6 hours and 30 minutes.
The cutting-edge Vande Bharat Express will allow residents in the region to travel quickly and comfortably. It will also increase tourism in the area. When compared to the present quickest train linking the two cities, the railway between Guwahati and New Jalpaiguri will save around an hour of travel time. Vande Bharat will complete the voyage in 5 hours and 30 minutes, whereas the present fastest train takes 6 hours and 30 minutes.
However, at the time of publication, the fare chart was still unavailable on the IRCTC website.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi used video conferencing to officially launch Assam's first Vande Bharat Express.
Also Read: PM Modi virtually flag of Northeast’s first Vande Bharat Express in Assam today
Timings of Guwahati-NJP Vande Bharat Express:
The Guwahati-NJP Vande Bharat Express (Train No-22228) will depart Guwahati at 16:30 and arrive in NJP at 22.00 after travelling 409 miles. The train will make stops in Kamakhya, New Bongaigaon, Kokrajhar, New Alipurduar, and New Coochbehar before arriving at NJP. The train will arrive at Kamakhya at 16.40 and depart at 16.42, New Bongaigaon at 18.35 and depart at 18.36, Kokrajhar at 18.56 and depart at 18.57, New Alipurduar at 19.48 and depart at 19.49, New Cooch Behar at 20.02 and depart at 20.03, and NJP at 22.00.
Meanwhile, the NJP-Guwahati Vande Bharat Express (Train No-22227) will depart NJP at 06:10 and arrive in Guwahati at 11.40 after travelling 409 miles. The train will make stops at New Coochbehar, New Alipurduar, Kokrajhar, New Bongaigaon, Kamakhya, and Guwahati before concluding in Guwahati.
The train will arrive in New Cooch Behar at 07.35 and depart at 07.36, New Alipurduar at 07.50 and depart at 07.51, Kokrajhar at 08.40 and depart at 08.41, New Bongaigaon at 09.13 and depart at 09.14, Kamakhya at 11.18 and depart at 11.20, and Guwahati at 11.40.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the other hand, will dedicate 182 Route km of freshly electrified sections. This will contribute to pollution-free transportation by increasing train speed and decreasing train operating time. It would also allow trains powered by electric propulsion to reach Meghalaya.