Varanasi, Oct 31 (HS): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi

Adityanath and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav inaugurated the

Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper Train and other train services from

Varanasi Railway Station on Saturday. The Varanasi-Prayagraj Rambagh Train Service

and the Varanasi-Raja Talab Train Service were flagged off to their

destinations. The Vande Bharat Sleeper Train is an excellent example of Make in

India and a self-reliant India.

At the program organized in Varanasi for the inauguration of

new rail services between Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper Express and

Varanasi City-Rajatalab as well as Banaras-Prayagraj Rambag, with the Honorable

Union Minister Shri @AshwiniVaishnaw Ji, UP CM said, “Starting

today, the journey between India's spiritual capital Kashi and the national

capital via the Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper Express will be

completed in 8 to 9 hours. Today, the MEMU train service to Varanasi

City-Rajatalab and Banaras-Prayagraj Rambagh was inaugurated. 157 railway

stations in Uttar Pradesh have been modernized. Railway stations and coaches

are clean and tidy. Hygiene is taken care of. This happens when there is the

will to work, a clean intent, and a clear policy.”

“Today, I participated in the program organized in Kashi for

the inauguration of the Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper Express and new

rail services between Varanasi City-Rajatabal and Banaras-Prayagraj Rambagh, in

the presence of the Honorable Union Minister Shri @AshwiniVaishnaw ji. I am

fully confident that this innovative initiative connecting two spiritual cities

will prove extremely beneficial for devotees, professionals, and students studying

in educational institutions of both cities. Heartfelt thanks to the esteemed

Prime Minister Shri @narendramodiji for these important rail gifts, and

heartfelt gratitude from the core of my heart to the Honorable Railway Minister

ji,” UP CM mentioned in a post on X.

On this occasion, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav

expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the launch of the

Vande Bharat Sleeper Train, stating that it is a train that has meticulously

ensured the convenience of passengers, loco pilots, and staff. The Railways

consistently addresses the needs of the underprivileged and the middle class.

This train allows you to sleep overnight in Varanasi and arrive in Delhi in the

morning, as is the case with the Delhi-Varanasi journey. The fare is also

nominal. Ten MEMU services were inaugurated in Varanasi on Saturday. The Prime

Minister himself directed the operation of these MEMU services to benefit the

youth, businessmen, and farmers of Varanasi. The fare for the memo train, which

includes an MST for youth and businessmen, is Rs. 95 from Varanasi to

Rajatalab, and Rs. 220 for the MST from Varanasi to Prayagraj Rambagh. The

Prime Minister also approved the North Corridor of the Bullet Train, which

includes various cities including Varanasi, Ayodhya, and Agra.

The journey time from

Varanasi to Delhi will be 3:33 minutes. He stated that when the Samajwadi Party

was in power in Uttar Pradesh and the Congress government was in power at the

Centre, Uttar Pradesh received a budget of only Rs. 1,100 crore, but today this

budget has increased twentyfold to Rs. 20,000 crore. The Bharatiya Janata Party

will be the one to build a prosperous and strong India, and you should always

remember this.

At the ceremony, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi

Adityanath welcomed Minister of Railways and Information Technology, Ashwini

Vaishnav, on the occasion of the launch of the Varanasi-Vande Bharat Sleeper

Train and two other train services. He welcomed everyone to Kashi, India's

ancient spiritual city and currently the Prime Minister's workplace, praising

the Prime Minister's leadership. He said that today is also the 151st birth

anniversary of the Iron Man, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who played a major role

in building a united India. Today, Indian Railways has fulfilled the dreams of

freedom fighters by connecting east to west and north to south.

He also praised the Railway Minister's efforts to bring the

railways out of losses and equip them with modern facilities. All railway lines

in Uttar Pradesh have been converted to broad gauge. On February 15, 2019, the

Prime Minister inaugurated the first Vande Bharat train from Delhi to Varanasi,

which was a chair car, but this is a sleeper train that will connect the

national capital with the spiritual capital. The operation of memo trains from

Kashi to Prayagraj will connect two spiritual cities and centers of education.

The Chief Minister said that today all railway crossings have been covered by

employees or underpasses, which has successfully prevented accidents. The speed

of trains has increased, providing continuous convenience to the public. The

freight corridor has also greatly benefited the local people. Today,

cleanliness and modern facilities have been provided at all the stations in

Kashi.

He said that these facilities have been provided at 157

stations in Uttar Pradesh. Earlier, the railway tracks were very dirty and

smelly, but today, with strong willpower, determination and strong faith, all

these have been eliminated and equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.

Today, along with cleanliness, all modern facilities have been made available

on the ghats of Kashi. The facilities of the Prime Minister's strong

determination are being seen. Before Diwali and Chhath Puja, the local people

including Kashi will benefit from the facilities of these trains. Heartfelt

thanks to all the residents of Kashi for this.

Cantt MLA Saurabh Srivastava welcomed the guests at the

event. Local MLAs, including Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, joined

the event virtually from Prayagraj Rambagh. The General Manager, Northern

Railway, honored the guests with mementos. Labour and Employment Minister Anil Rajbhar, Stamp Minister

(Independent Charge) Ravindra Jaiswal, Ayush Minister Dr Dayashankar Mishra

Dayalu, Minister of State for MSME Hansraj Vishwakarma, District Panchayat

President Poonam Maurya, Mayor Ashok Tiwari, former Minister and MLA Dr

Neelkanth Tiwari, MLA Saurabh Srivastava, MLA Dr Awadhesh Singh, MLA Dr Sunil

Patel, Member Legislative Council Shyam Narayan Singh 'Vineet Singh', Vishal

Singh Chanchal, Annapurna Singh, Rai Dharmendra Singh, Divisional Commissioner

S. Rajlingam, Police Commissioner Mohit Agarwal, Additional Police Commissioner

Shivhari Meena, District Magistrate Satyendra Kumar were also present in the

programme.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi