The first Vande Bharat sleeper train between Guwahati and Kolkata will be inaugurated on January 17th. Six new Amrit Bharat Expresses will also be launched, according to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav.
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Vande Bharat sleeper train: Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav has announced that the first Vande Bharat Sleeper train between Kolkata and Guwahati will commence operations on January 17th and will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Malda Town, West Bengal. This Vande Bharat Sleeper train, which runs between Kolkata and Guwahati, will run six days a week between Kamakhya and Howrah Junction. The Railway Minister also announced the launch of six new Amrit Bharat Expresses, which will begin service on January 17th and 18th, 2026.
This information was provided by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav at the Ati Vishisht Rail Seva Awards ceremony in Delhi. At the ceremony held on Thursday, Vaishnav stated that Indian Railways will undergo a major transformation in 2026. Artificial intelligence will be used extensively for all kinds of improvements.
Know what Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said?
At the event, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav stated that new methods and technologies will be introduced to ensure passenger safety. Fifty-two improvements will be introduced in the 52 weeks of 2026, ensuring a new facet of the railways. The Railway Minister stated that technology and innovation are being promoted in the railways today. A new structural approach will also be adopted for this purpose. A new structural framework for technology and innovation will be developed to enable India’s startups and innovative minds to connect with the railways. Minister Vaishnav stated that a Technology Innovation Portal will also be launched and used extensively for maintenance activities.
How much will the fare be?
If we look at the fares for the Vande Bharat Sleeper Train, which will be inaugurated on January 17th, the fare for Third AC has been fixed at ₹2300, while the fare for Second AC will be ₹3000, and the fare for First AC has been proposed to be around ₹3600. The sleeper train has been designed keeping long-distance travel in mind. By the end of the year, approximately 12 Vande Bharat Sleeper trains will be ready. Its trial run was conducted on December 30th on the Kota-Nagda railway track, where the train ran at a speed of 180 kilometers per hour. The loco pilot had also kept four glasses of water, and even at such speeds, the water did not spill out of the glasses.
