Indian Railways is pursuing rail modernisation through an expanding portfolio of indigenously manufactured train services and through technology demonstrations, alongside continued execution of the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail project. The reported focus spans safety and security systems, higher speeds and better ride comfort, passenger amenities, and environmental sustainability through alternative-energy experimentation.

What happened (reported in the PIB release)

The Ministry of Railways reported expansion and operational deployment of multiple modern train categories, plus reported milestones for the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail (MAHSR) corridor and the launch of India’s first hydrogen train demonstration.

Vande Bharat (semi-high speed) rollout and stated features

Indian Railways reported that the Vande Bharat (Chair Car) service expanded after the first semi-high speed Vande Bharat launch on 15 February 2019 on the New Delhi–Kanpur–Prayagraj–Varanasi corridor. The government reported the operating footprint and listed safety, comfort, and operational design features, including KAVACH integration, sealed wider gangways, plug doors, jerk-free semi-permanent couplers, and enhanced fire detection and suppression in electrical cabinets and lavatories. Indian Railways also reported CCTV coverage, coach condition monitoring, and a UV-C lamp based disinfection system for conditioned air deactivating harmful bacteria.

For Vande Bharat Sleeper services, the government reported that two train sets were manufactured after trials, and that the first service—Howrah–Kamakhya Vande Bharat Sleeper Express (27575/27576)—commenced regular operation with effect from 22.01.2026. The government listed additional sleeper-oriented design points such as crashworthy carbody compliance with EN standards, fire barrier doors between coaches, regenerative braking, and an energy/condition monitoring approach through a centralized coach monitoring system.

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