New Vande Bharat train gets rousing welcome in Belagavi
Belagavi: The newly introduced Vande Bharat (VB) Express, between Bengaluru and Belagavi, arrived here on Sunday night to a rousing reception.
The Bengaluru-Belagavi VB Express was part of the three new VB trains flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Bengaluru on Sunday.
With the launch of this train, the number of VB services operating in Karnataka has risen to 11.
The train will cover the 611 km distance from Bengaluru to Belagavi in 8 hours and 30 minutes, reducing current travel time by about an hour and 20 minutes and by about an hour and 40 minutes on the return leg compared to existing express trains.
The service will be available six days a week, except Wednesday. The train will leave Bengaluru at 2.20 pm and reach Belagavi at 10.40 pm. On the return leg, it will depart Belagavi at 5.20 am and reach Bengaluru at 1.50 pm. It will stop at Dharwad, Hubballi, Haveri, Davangere, Tumakuru, and Yeshwantpur.
Sharing details about the new service, railway officials said the VB Express has 530 chair car seats across eight coaches.
A grand welcome was organised by South Western Railways (SWR), Hubballi division, at Belagavi station for the new VB train.
Members of parliament Jagadish Shettar and Iranna Kadadi, MLA Vitthal Halagekar, former MP Mangala Angadi, former MLA Sanjay Patil, mayor Mangesh Pawar, Hubballi divisional railway additional manager T V Bhushan, and other senior railway officials were present at flower-decked station.
A large crowd had gathered at Belagavi station almost two hours before the train arrived to catch a glimpse of it. As the train pulled in, chants of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" rent the air, with some whistling, cheering and clapping in joy. Many pulled out their phones to capture selfies with the gleaming new VB rake.
Local artists added a festive touch to the occasion, performing patriotic songs and folk dance.
Shettar, the Belagavi MP, said 1,200 acres were acquired for the new Belagavi-Kittur-Dharwad railway line, and that compensation would be handed out soon to those whose land had been acquired for the project.
Kadadi, the Rajya Sabha member, said the VB train's 5.30 am departure time from Belagavi needed to be revised in order to ensure greater passenger convenience, with the city serving as a link between three states -- Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Goa.
SWR officials said the Bengaluru-Belagavi VB Express received a hearty welcome from the public at Yeshwantpur, Tumakuru, Davangere, Haveri, and Hubballi stations.
**Photo**
Name: VB
Caption: The VB Express arrived in Belagavi late on Sunday night amid rousing reception.
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