Railways to export Vande Bharat trains by 2025-26

Indian Railways is looking at becoming an exporter of Vande Bharat trains by 2025-26 to markets senior official said.

The latest version of the indigenous trains with sleeper coaches will be operational by the first quarter of 2024. The official said the railways is planning to clock 1-1.2 million kilometres on 75 Vande Bharat trains over the next few years to ensure that they are export-ready.

“The ecosystem to export trains has to be created over the next two to three years. We are on track to manufacture 475 Vande Bharat trains in the next three years and once they run successfully there will be confidence in global markets about the product. The Vande Bharat trains meet all international standards,” he said.

The official said these trains have a rider index of three, which means no or minimal jolts for passengers, and noise level of 65 decibels, which is 100 times less than the sound produced in aircraft.

He also said that while the present Vande Bharat trains are fit for broad gauge, the railways’ manufacturing units will customise the trains to run on standard gauges used by countries across the world.