Rajmohan Unnithan.
Credit: Facebook/@Rajmohan Unnithan
The Vande Bharat Express train is not anyone's family property and no one should be arrogant enough to presume so, Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan said on Sunday prior to the flagging off of the second such train in the state by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Modi flagged off nine such Vande Bharat Express trains across the country via an online ceremony.
Unnithan, speaking at an event at the Kasaragod Railway Station before the train was flagged off, also said that Kerala was entitled to get 10 Vande Bharat trains as a matter of right and not as a generosity.
In response to his statement, Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan said that the Congress MP need not be concerned as the southern state would get much more than 10 Vande Bharat trains.
"Under the Narendra Modi government, Kerala will get everything that it is entitled to receive," he said.
Later, onboard the train, the MoS reiterated that Kerala would get more Vande Bharat trains.
"Surely. There are 34 trains now. More than 400 are yet to come," he said on being asked whether the state would get more such trains.
The Union minister also said that Kerala has numerous tourist destinations across the state and with the availability of a fast train like Vande Bharat, tourists can reach any of those spots very quickly.
"It is a new chapter in Kerala's development and financial growth," the MoS said.
On being asked if it will be an alternative to Silverline, Muraleedharan said K-Rail's semi-high speed corridor was only on paper.
Muraleedharan also said the flagging off of Vande Bharat train, one among nine across India, by the PM was a joyous occasion.
Besides him, Chairman of Indian Railways' Passenger Amenities Committee (PAC) P K Krishnadas and Kerala Minister for Sports, Wakf and Haj Pilgrimage, Posts and Telegraph V Abdurahiman and BJP state president K Surendran were also onboard the new train.
Abdurahiman, speaking to reporters, said the Union Railway Minister had said that more stations cannot be added to the route of the first Vande Bharat express to ensure the travel time is not increased.
"However, he assured us that the second train will connect Alappuzha and Malappuram and that there will be a stop at Tirur station. So, that has become a reality now."
Abdurahiman also said that the popularity of the Vande Bharat express has indicated the need for high speed trains in the state and if its entire running time can be reduced to 4-5 hours, it can be seen as an alternative to the Silverline.
"There is a need to change with the requirements of the time. Presently, there is a need for a high-speed train," he said.
Surendran said the second train from Kasaragod, the northernmost district of Kerala, to Thiruvananthapuram in the south was a big blessing for the people of the state.
He also said that it would be beneficial to the development of the state and the Railways.
"A lot of states have not received two Vande Bharat trains and some important states have not got even one," he said.
Visuals of the train at Kasaragod station showed a huge crowd gathered there to see the new Vande Bharat Express and took selfies and videos alongside it.
After it was flagged off by PM Modi in an online ceremony, it started from Kasaragod to the beat of drums and songs at around 1 pm.
The second Vande Bharat train of Kerala comes in a new colour scheme of orange-grey, unlike the blue-white of the first one, with 8 coaches -- half of the earlier one.
The other differences include addition of a new station -- Tirur -- and the stop at Kottayam being replaced with Alappuzha, a Railway official said.
The second train would commence service from September 26 when it will run from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod.
From September 27 onwards it will run from Thiruvananthapuram to Kasaragod and back with no service on Mondays when the train will undergo maintenance, the official said.
The new Vande Bharat trains flagged off by the PM will run between: Udaipur-Jaipur; Tirunelveli-Madurai-Chennai; Hyderabad-Bengaluru; Vijayawada-Chennai (via Renigunta); Patna-Howrah; Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram; Rourkela-Bhubaneswar -Puri; Ranchi-Howrah; and Jamnagar-Ahmedabad.
These trains, equipped with world class amenities and advanced safety features, including Kavach technology, will be a key step towards providing modern, speedy and comfortable means of travel to common people, professionals, businessmen, student community and tourists, the railways said in a statement.
Kerala's first Vande Bharat express was flagged off in April by PM Modi from Thiruvananthapuram.