Parliament Question: High-Speed Corridors and Vande Bharat

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3312 ANSWERED ON 20.03.2026 HIGH-SPEED CORRIDORS AND VANDE BHARAT 3312 DR. BHAGWAT KARAD: SHRI BRIJ LAL: SHRI MITHLESH KUMAR: SHRI BABUBHAI JESANGBHAI DESAI: SHRI ASHOKRAO SHANKARRAO CHAVAN: SMT. KIRAN CHOUDHRY: SHRI SHAMBHU SHARAN PATEL: DR. DINESH SHARMA: SHRI RAJIB BHATTACHARJEE: SHRI DEEPAK PRAKASH: SHRI BABURAM NISHAD: SHRI NARAYANA KORAGAPPA: SHRI NARHARI AMIN: SHRI LAHAR SINGH SIROYA: Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state: (a) whether Ministry has finalised execution plan for seven new ‘Growth Connector’ high-speed rail corridors announced in 2026-27 budget; (b) if so, details thereof; (c) number of Vande Bharat Sleeper rakes expected to be operational by end of 2026, and strategy for deployment on routes exceeding 1,000 km; (d) progress made towards goal of launching Vande Bharat 4.0 with design speed of 250 kmph; (e) whether there is a roadmap to introduce regional cuisines and AI-driven passenger services across all premium trainsets by 2027; (f) if so, details thereof; and (g) whether there is a plan to operate a daily Rajdhani Express from Ranchi, Jharkhand? ANSWER MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW) (a) to (g): Presently, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) Project (508 km) is under execution. The Project is passing through the States of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Union Territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli with 12 stations planned at Mumbai, Thane, Virar, Boisar, Vapi, Billimora, Surat, Bharuch, Vadodara, Anand, Ahmedabad and Sabarmati. §Entire land (1389.5 Ha.) for MAHSR project has been acquired. All Statutory Clearances have been obtained. All 1651 utilities have been shifted. The delay in land acquisition in the State of Maharashtra has impacted the project till 2021. The land acquisition picked up in 2022 in Maharashtra. The progress of various major items so far is as under: Item Progress Piers 430 kms. Girder 341 kms. Track Bed 174 kms. OHE Masts 153 kms. The progress of stations is given below:- S.No. Station Status Foundation works completed, Platform slab & roof structural works 1 Sabarmati and finishing works are in progress. 2 Ahmedabad Structural works completed and finishing works have been taken up. 3 Anand/Nadiad Foundation work completed, structural works and finishing works 4 Vadodara have been taken up. 5 Bharuch 6 Surat Structural works completed and finishing works have been taken up. 7 Bilimora 8 Vapi 9 Boisar Foundation works have been taken up and in advanced stage. 10 Virar Structural works have been taken up. 11 Thane BKC This is an underground station. Foundation works almost completed 12 (Mumbai) and Base Slab has been taken up. The progress on the River Bridges is as under:- S. No. River Name Status Sub-Structure work completed, Superstructure work 1 Sabarmati River (480m) has been taken up. 2 Meshwa River (120m) 3 Vatrak River (280m) Bridge construction completed. 4 Mohar (Shedhi) River (160m) 5 Mahi River (720m) 11 out of 12 wells completed; 5 spans launched 6 Vishwamitri River (80m) Bridge construction completed. 7 Dhadhar River (120m) 8 Narmada River (1366m) 21 out of 25 wells completed; 4 spans launched 9 Kim River (120m) Bridge construction completed. Foundation work has been taken up, 10 out of 12 10 Tapi River (720m) wells completed 11 Mindhola River (240m) 12 Purna River (360m) Bridge construction completed. 13 Ambika River (200m) §14 Venganiya River (200m) 15 Kaveri River (120m) 16 Kharera River (120m) 17 Auranga River (320m) 18 Par River (320m) 19 Kolak River (160m) 20 Daman Ganga River (360m) 21 Darotha River (80m) 22 Jagani River (360m) Foundation works have been completed 23 Vaitarna River (2320m) 12 Pile Cap and 11 Pier (out of 58) completed. Temporary Access Bridge (TAB) completed to start 24 Ulhas River Branch (120m) the foundation work. Desai Khadi River Bridge Geo-technical Investigation (GTI) has been 25 (400m) completed and Design work has been taken up. The work of the under-sea tunnel (approximately 21 km) has commenced, out of which 4.8 km of tunnel between Ghansoli and Shilphata in Maharashtra has been completed. Further, to strengthen national transport infrastructure, provide a fillip to regional connectivity, economic growth, tourism, investment and employment generation, and encourage modal shift from road and air transport to rail, the Government has announced the development of the following seven new High-Speed Rail (HSR) corridors in the Union Budget 2026-27: - (i) Mumbai–Pune (ii) Pune–Hyderabad (iii) Hyderabad–Bengaluru (iv) Hyderabad–Chennai (v) Chennai–Bengaluru (vi) Delhi–Varanasi (vii) Varanasi–Siliguri Being highly capital intensive, the decision to sanction any HSR Corridor/Project depends on many factors such as outcome of DPR, techno-economic feasibility studies and availability of resources such as financing options etc. Vande Bharat Sleeper Express: For long distance travel the Sleeper variant of Vande Bharat Express has been indigenously designed and developed by Indian Railways. Presently, 2 Vande Bharat Sleeper services are in operation on the Indian Railway network. The First Vande Bharat Sleeper service viz. 27575/27576 Howrah- Kamakhya Vande Bharat Sleeper Express has commenced regular operation w.e.f. 22.01.2026. §Broad technological advancements and safety features provided in these Vande Bharat Sleeper Trains are as below:  Jerk-Free Semi permanent couplers and Anti Climbers.  Fitted with KAVACH.  Higher acceleration with design/operating speed of 180/160 KMPH.  Crashworthy Design of Car body complying with EN standards.  Fire barrier doors at the end of each coach for compliance of Fire Safety standards.  Aerosol based fire detection and suppression system in electrical cabinets and lavatories.  Regenerative braking system for energy efficiency.  Air conditioning units provided with indigenously developed UV-C lamp based disinfection system for deactivating 99% harmful bacteria from conditioned air to improve the hygiene standards inside the passenger area.  Centrally controlled Automatic Plug Doors and fully sealed wider gangways.  CCTVs in all coaches.  Emergency talk-back unit for communication between Passenger and Train Manager/Loco Pilot in case of emergency.  For Divyangjan passengers, special lavatory in the driving coaches on each end.  Centralized Coach Monitoring System for better condition monitoring of passenger amenities such as Air conditioning, Saloon Lighting etc.  Ergonomically designed ladder for ease of climbing on to upper berths. Presently, Ranchi-Delhi sector is served by 08 pairs of train services including 03 pairs of Rajdhani services. These are listed below: S.No. Train No. Train Name Frequency 1 20839/20840 Ranchi-New Delhi Rajdhani Express Bi-weekly 2 12453/12454 Ranchi-New Delhi Rajdhani Express Weekly 3 20407/20408 Ranchi-New Delhi Rajdhani Express Weekly 4 12877/12878 Ranchi-New Delhi Garib Rath Express Tri-weekly 5 12873/12874 Hatia-Anand Vihar Terminus Express Tri-weekly 6 12817/12818 Hatia-Anand Vihar Terminus Express Tri-weekly 7 12825/12826 Ranchi-Anand Vihar Terminus Express Bi-weekly 8 18309/18310 Sambalpur-Jammu Tawi Express Four days in a week §The 03 pairs of Rajdhani Express service listed above are catering the said sector four days in a week. On the remaining 3 days, 12877/12878 Ranchi-New Delhi Garib Rath Express (Tri-weekly) is being operated on a common path between Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction and New Delhi. Further, introduction of train services on Indian Railways, including Rajdhani Express and Vande Bharat Express services is an on-going process subject to operational feasibility, traffic pattern and availability of resources. The Ministry of Railways vide Commercial Circular No. 25 of 2025 has given IRCTC flexibility to Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC) to customize the menu in trains to include items of regional cuisines, seasonal delicacies and health food options, including millet-based products. Under the above mandate, the menu of premium trains has been designed by IRCTC based on passenger feedback. IRCTC has introduced regional cuisines from time to time to offer a personalised experience to passengers of different regions. Some of the regional cuisines introduced in trains are as under:- S. No. States Cuisine Items 1 Odisha Dalma, Chenna Poda 2 Tamil Nadu Set Dosai, Palakatti Chettinad 3 Karnataka Medu Vada 4 Rajasthan Pyaz Kachori 5 Maharashtra Vada Pav 6 West Bengal Machher Jhol 7 Gujarat Thepla 8 Jharkhand Singara, Fuluri, Aloo Chokha, Aloo Parwal 9 Madhya Pradesh Kanda Poha, Indori Poha, Sev Tamatar Sabji, Ajwain Paratha, Ragi Bhakhri, Patra Bhagar, Khoya Chicken, Ragi Thepla, Bhey Introduction of these regional/local dishes has given passengers the opportunity to enjoy authentic local flavors and connect with the local culture. ***** §