50 Amrit Bharat trains to be manufactured at ICF in next 2 yrs: Railway Minister Vaishnaw

The Ministry of Railways has added 12 major improvements on the Amrit Bharat Version 2.0 trains and 50 such trains will be manufactured at ICF over the next two years, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said here on Friday.

Vaishnaw, who inspected the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) along with its General Manager U Subba Rao, said the state government should place service to people above politics and the Centre and his Ministry is committed to take measures for the welfare of the people.

"Very happy to see the Amrit Bharat Version 2.0 (being manufactured here). As you can recall, the Amrit Bharat Version 1.0 was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi last January 2024 and based on the experience in the last one year, many improvements have been made in the Amrit Bharat Version 2.0," Vaishnaw told reporters at the ICF here.

Sharing some of the salient features that have been improved in the Amrit Bharat trains, he said, "12 major improvements have been done in the entire train. Semi-automatic couplets, modular toilets, chair pillars and partitions, emergency talk back feature, emergency brake system, continuous lighting system like Vande Bharat trains, seats and berths with new ergonomic design have been improved."

He said the entire pantry car in the Amrit Bharat Version 2.0 trains have been built using a new design.

Targeted at low income and low middle income families, he said, "50 such Amrit Bharat Version 2.0 trains would be manufactured in the coming two years (at the Integral Coach Factory.). This will provide a very affordable service and very high quality of travelling experience to people travelling long distances."

Later talking to PTI Videos, Vaishnaw said the Amrit Bharat train has been designed to provide a comfortable travel experience even to the 'poorest of the poor people.'

"The Amrit Bharat is designed based on the experience of Vande (Bharat) Sleeper and the first version of the Amrit Bharat (which was launched in 2024). The general coach has features like comfortable seats, charging points, mobile phone and water bottle holders and more," he said.

To another query, he said the state government should extend its support as land allocation to the Ministry has been a major issue.

"We need the support of the state government in land acquisition. We must make sure that people's facilities are above politics and we must look at the welfare of the people first. I have requested the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu (M K Stalin) to support us," he said.

"People of Tamil Nadu seek better facilities and the Government of India and the Prime Minister are committed to provide those facilities. If we work in tandem (Centre and State government together), then we can provide better facilities to the people," he said.

Responding to a query about the apprehension raised by the Commissioner of Railway Safety on the construction of the historic Pamban bridge in Rameswaram, he said the designing of the bridge was done based on the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO).

"When you do the RDSO standard, such a standard of designs is done for bridges which are constructed in large numbers. This is a unique bridge. Pamban Bridge is once in a lifetime that you design and construct a bridge of this type," he said.

He cleared the air that the Commissioner of Railways Safety was explained that this is not a standard bridge and uniquely designed bridge and the services of the best international experts have been taken for designing. "The CRS has understood and they have now given the clearance on the bridge design. Panel report has also come," he said.

The minister said the Railways has installed the KAVACH (a facility to help prevent train accidents) in 10,000 locomotives and 15,000 km of track side fittings are also being done.

"Telecom towers are also being installed. Cameras are being installed on the front of the locomotives. In a sense for safety, new point machines have been designed, as in one incident near Chennai, people took the bolts of the point machine. New designs of bolts have been prepared and they are now being fitted in such a way that nobody can take them out," he said.

On the rail connectivity between Jammu and Srinagar, he said it is a 'dream come true' project and the Commissioner of Rail Safety has done the speed trials. "It is a very, very complex project. Out of the 110 km about 97 km are under tunnels and 6 km are on bridges. That is a very, very complex project," he said.

On the capital expenditure allotted to the Railways, he said by the end of December 2024, the Ministry has utilised nearly 76 per cent and termed that the capital expenditure allotted to the Railways was historic in 2024.