Amid heat on Indian Railways due to a stampede at New Delhi Railway Station, the much-awaited ceremony- Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat Express Train launch date has been postponed. Although the government is yet to confirm the postponement of the Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat Train launch date, multiple reports suggest that the high-speed train will now be flagged off in the upcoming days. For the unversed, Kashmir Vande Bharat Express Train was supposed to be flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 17, 2025.
Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat new launch date
As per ABP, Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat's new launch date is expected to be February 21 or 22. The report further suggests that Northern Railway officials had received verbal instructions to limit staff leaves and be prepared.
The report further quoted a source outlining the postponement of Vande Bharat Train Katra to Srinagar because of the swearing-in ceremony in Delhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to inaugurate the service on the revised date. Saqib Yusuf, Chief Area Manager, Kashmir Railway, Budgam (CAM), was quoted by the media house saying that no official order has been issued to start the service on February 17 or the revised dates. He said these reports have not been confirmed through any official announcement.
Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat: Timings
The Northern Railway had announced the train timings for the Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat last month. According to this, the Vande Bharat Express train will leave Katra at 8.10 am and reach Srinagar at 11.20 am. The train will leave Srinagar at 8.55 am and reach Katra at 12.05 pm.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed the Rajya Sabha in a written reply last week that as of January 2025, 136 Vande Bharat train services with chair cars are operational on the Indian Railways network.`
Katra-Srinagar Vande Bharat Stoppages
Vande Bharat Kashmir or Vande Bharat Katra-Srinagar train will run on the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL), connecting major stations-
- Katra
- Udhampur
- Banihal
- Qazigund
- Anantnag
- Avantipura
The ambitious Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) is the most challenging railway project ever built by the Indian railways. It is also one of the world's most challenging railway projects technologically. It is a gigantic infrastructure project built by the Indian railways.
The project includes the country's first cable-stayed Anji Khad Bridge with a 331-metre-high pylon. The world's tallest railway bridge, taller than the Eiffel Tower of Paris, the Chenab Railway Bridge is 359 metres above the river bed. There are over a dozen tunnels on the railway route between Udhampur and Srinagar.
Specially designed for extreme weather conditions, the Vande Bharat train can operate at minus 20 degrees Celsius temperature.