Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw refutes reports of delay in Vande Bharat sleeper trains over design

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Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has refuted media reports that the manufacturing process for Vande Bharat sleeper trains has been delayed due to design approval concerns, PTI reported.

While speaking to the media on Thursday, Vaishnaw said that the design was never an issue with the Russian firm involved in manufacturing these train sets.

Earlier, a part of media quoting officials from the Russian company Transmashholding (TMH) reported that the Indian Railways demanded toilets and a pantry car in the train which requires tweaking the trains' design, PTI cited.

The reports further claimed that the firm addressed the Railway Ministry's concerns with the design change and sent it to the ministry for clearance, which has however not responded with its consent.

As per the contracts, the firm is expected to manufacture 1,920 sleeper coaches.

However, ministry sources claimed that the reports were baseless since the real issues were with regard to the Russian firm's limited manufacturing capabilities, trains have less number of coaches as compared to India.

"The firm doesn't have the experience to manufacture a train set of more than six or eight coaches. We had told them that we would give them the design of Vande Bharat to follow. What they need is more manufacturing teams," Vaishnaw said.

He added, "I want to clarify that when the contract was signed, it clearly said that they have to manufacture train sets with coaches 16/20/24."

As per the minister, the firm was clearly told that since India has a huge population, some routes required 24 coaches, while other routes required 16 coaches, PTI reported.

Ministry sources said to PTI that since trains generally have six to eight coaches in Russia due to less population, the firm questioned why India needed a train set with 16, 20 or 24 coaches.

The sources claimed that the issues have been resolved and the work is expected to start very soon, PTI reported.

Indian Railways announces Vande Bharat train trio portfolio

The Indian Railways (IR) said it was expanding the Vande Bharat Portfolio with Vande Bharat Express, Vande Metro, and the upcoming Vande Bharat Sleeper trains, catering to both short- and long-distance travellers.

"Indigenously designed under the ‘Make in India' initiative, offer cutting-edge features delivering luxury and efficiency to millions of passengers. With faster commute times, advanced safety features, and world-class amenities, Indian Railways is setting new benchmarks in travel," an IR spokesperson said.

"As the flagship initiative under the ‘Make in India' campaign, the Vande Bharat trains embody India's aspirations for modern, efficient, and world-class Rail travel. With the Vande Bharat Express, Vande Metro, and the upcoming Vande Bharat Sleeper trains, Indian Railways is poised to redefine the passenger experience, catering to both short- and long-distance travellers with unprecedented speed, safety, and comfort," he said.

(With inputs from PTI)