Vande Bharat Express Trains are turning out to be a great asset for the Central Government and India. The high-speed premium train Vande Bharat is now in massive demand as MPs and MLAs tender their request to the Indian Railway Ministry for its services in their constituencies. However, to connect with the masses, Vande Bharat Express ticket prices often remain under discussion. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday said that the fares of different classes in different trains are based on the facilities provided in them and different train services are provided for different types of passenger classes. The minister gave this information in a written reply to questions asked in the Lok Sabha regarding the higher fares of Vande Bharat trains.
Rakibul Hussain, a Congress member from Dhubri in Assam, through his question, wanted to know whether the government has considered reducing the fares of Vande Bharat Express to make this premium train service more affordable for a larger section of the population, especially the lower-income group.
Replying to a query, Vaishnav said that Indian Railways fixes fares keeping in view the cost of travel, expenses, affordability of the passenger, competition from other modes of transport, socio-economic aspects etc.
"The fares of different trains/classes are based on the facilities provided in these trains. Indian Railways operates different types of trains for different types of passenger segments," said Ashwini Vaishnaw, adding, "Recently IR has introduced Amrit Bharat services, which are fully non-AC trains, presently comprising 12 Sleeper Class Coaches and 8 General Class coaches providing high-quality services to a larger section of the population, particularly lower income groups."
Increasing general and sleeper coaches: Ashwani Vaishnaw
Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that the government is making rail travel easier for the common people and his ministry is focusing on installing more coaches so that the common citizens of the country can get the full benefits of the railway service.
Vaishnaw, while replying to the discussion on the demands for grants under the control of the Ministry of the Railways for the year 2025-26 in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, said that there is no problem leak in the examination for recruitment in the railways now and the railway papers are being conducted easier and smoothly.
Recently, the railway recruitment exam was conducted on a large scale for five days. This exam was conducted for five days at various centres across the country but there was no problem anywhere.
According to the railway minister, Amrit Bharat trains have modern state-of-the-art technology, equipped with advanced features like semi-permanent couplers for jerk-free travel, horizontal sliding windows, foldable snack tables, and bottle holders, and mobile holders.