Bhubaneswar, Sept 15: Odisha got two new Vande Bharat express trains launched virtually by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday.

With these two new trains (Tatanagar-Brahampur and Rourkela-Howrah), the number of Vande Bharat trains to run in Odisha rose to six.

PM Modi flagged off six Vande Bharat Trains from Tatanagar Junction Railway Station in Jharkhand today. The six new trains will run between Tatanagar-Patna, Brahmapur-Tatanagar, Rourkela-Howrah, Deoghar-Varanasi, Bhagalpur-Howrah and Gaya-Howrah.

The Raipur-Vishakhapatnam Vande Bharat train which is scheduled to be flagged off on September 16 runs through Odisha as well.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi who was present at Brahmapur for a special programme held on this occasion stated in his speech that the connection between Brahmapur, popularly known as Silk City, and the industrial town Tatanagar through semi-high-speed train express train will ensure rapid development of tourism and trade sectors in Berhampur.

He further added that currently three Vande Bharat trains, Puri-Howrah, Puri-Rourkela and Bhubaneswar-Vishakhapatnam, are running in Odisha while three new Vande Bharat trains-Brahmapur-Tatanagar, Rourkela-Hawara and Raipur-Vishakhapatnam- will now run in the state.

“These three Vande Bharat Express trains will be the lifeline of Southern and Western Odisha. Communication in our tribal-dominated areas will be developed and they can also be a part of our economic growth. These six Vande Bharat trains will connect various cities of our state with neighbouring states. This will help in the rapid development and progress of Odisha,” said Chief Minister Mohan Majhi.

Majhi expressed happiness over the fact that the Indian Railways has taken several important steps for infrastructure development to boost rail connectivity in Odisha.

He highlighted that the Union government approved the construction of eight new rail lines in Odisha in the current financial year with a projected cost of Rs 20,000 crore.

The Union government has earmarked Rs 10,586 crore for the development of railways in Odisha in the 2024-25 financial year. Besides, as many as 52 stations including the railway stations of Puri and Bhubaneswar will be expanded and modernised under the Amrit Bharat Station scheme, the Chief Minister said.

He also said that the Union government has planned to spend Rs 1 lakh crore on various projects for the development of rail infrastructure in Odisha while so far projects worth Rs 70,000 crore have already been approved.

The Chief Minister travelled from Brahmapur to the state capital Bhubaneswar on the Vande Bharat train after the special programme on Sunday.

Governor Raghubar Das also participated in a special programme at Rourkela on the occasion of the flagging-off ceremony of the Rourkela-Howrah Vande Bharat Express train.

(With IANS Inputs)

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