Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the Vande Bharat Sleeper Service between Bengaluru and Mumbai will be launched soon. He flagged off the express train running between Bengaluru and Mumbai virtually on Sunday.

After flagging off Train No. 16553/54, Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) Bengaluru - Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Express, Ashwini Vaishnaw said that this is a major step towards strengthening railway connectivity between Karnataka and Maharashtra. He said that the long-pending demands of southern and northern Karnataka are now being fulfilled, and in this sequence, the Vande Bharat Sleeper Service between Bengaluru and Mumbai will be launched soon.

Emphasizing infrastructure development, he said that there has been a significant increase in the railway budget in recent years, resulting in the rapid completion of projects across Karnataka. Under the Amrit Bharat Station Yojana, 61 stations in the state are being rebuilt at a cost of Rs 2,160 crore, of which nine stations have been completed. The Bengaluru Cantonment station is being rebuilt at a cost of Rs 485 crore, while the Yesvantpur railway station is being rebuilt at a cost of Rs 367 crore.

He stated that approximately 1,750 km of new railway lines have been laid in Karnataka since 2014. Additionally, the challenging electrification work in the Hassan-Mangaluru section has been completed and is currently in the trial phase.

Regarding the Bengaluru Suburban Railway project, the Minister said that work is progressing rapidly on all four corridors. Land acquisition work has been completed for the Baiyappanahalli-Chikkabanavara and Heelalige-Rajanukunte corridors, and construction work is underway at stations. The KSR Bengaluru-Devanahalli route has been approved jointly by the state government and the railways, and its geotechnical survey has been completed. The Kengeri-Whitefield route has recently been approved, and its survey will begin soon.

He said that this suburban railway network will connect key centers such as the airport, Electronic City, Marathahalli, and Hebbal. Ashwini Vaishnaw stated that 12 pairs of Vande Bharat trains are currently operating in Karnataka. Experimental work is underway on the Bengaluru-Mangaluru route, which will soon improve coastal connectivity to Madgaon.

He further said that the bullet train corridor connecting Bengaluru to Hyderabad and Chennai has also been approved. This network, which will connect Mumbai, Bengaluru, and other major cities, is expected to expand to 7,000 km in the future. On the occasion, Minister of State for Railways V. Somanna thanked Ashwini Vaishnaw, saying that this will greatly benefit passengers on one of the busiest routes and further boost Karnataka's development.

He stated that 12 pairs of Vande Bharat trains are currently operating in Karnataka, connecting 14 districts. He said that a Vande Bharat sleeper maintenance depot will be set up at Tannir Sandra at a cost of Rs 270 crore, while a chair car maintenance center will be established at SMVT Bengaluru at a cost of Rs 52.73 crore. Railway capacity enhancement projects are underway, including the Baiyappanahalli-Hosur (Rs 1,116 crore), Bettahalsur-Rajanukunte (Rs 248 crore), and four railway lines around Bengaluru (Rs 1,347 crore).

V. Somanna stated that automatic signaling work is being carried out at major sections such as Yesvantpur, KSR Bengaluru, Lotte Gollahalli, Baiyappanahalli, Penukonda, Mysuru, and Jolarpettai at a total cost of Rs 6,396 crore. He said that Karnataka has been allocated a record Rs 7,748 crore in the railway budget. In the state, approximately 3,840 km of railway lines have been constructed and 3,742 km electrified since 2014, bringing the state close to 100% electrification.

P.C. Mohan, Lahar Singh Siroya, and Tejasvi Surya also participated in the program via video conferencing.