Railway Minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu flagged off the newly introduced Vijayawada-Dharmavaram Tri-Weekly Express which commenced its maiden journey from Vijayawada via Remote Video Link from New Delhi today. Manoj Sinha, Minister of State for Railways & Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Information Technology and Communications, Y.S.Chowdary, Minister of State for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, A.K.Mital, Chairman Railway Board and Other Railway Board officials were present on the occasion.
Simultaneously, a function was also held at Vijayawada Railway Station to flag off the new train in which Ravindra Gupta, General Manager, SCR, Ashok Kumar, Divisional Railway Manager, Vijayawada Division and other officials were present.
Addressing the gathering via video remote link, Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu said that Indian Railways is determined to play its role to perfection. Exuding confidence, the Minister for Railways added that the commitments made during the last rail budget will surely be fulfilled. on the newly introduced Express Train Service, he stated that the introduction of the train, fulfils a long felt aspiration of the public in the State of Andhra Pradesh. The service will go a long way in meeting the needs of the rail users, offering convenient connectivity to the capital area of the state.
Y.S.Chowdary, Minister State for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences in his brief address complimented the Railways for taking concrete steps towards fulfilling the assurances made as also the aspirations of the public. The new train in Andhra Pradesh, will be of immense help to the rail users, he added.
Earlier, in his welcome address at Vijayawada, Ravindra Gupta, General Manager, SCR stated that the Minister of Railways has taken initiative to introduce the new tri-weekly express train service between Vijayawada and Dharmavaram keeping in view the public aspirations and the importance of stronger rail connectivity in Andhra Pradesh. The newly introduced Vijayawada-Dharmavaram Express will act as a big boon to the people of the state, providing comfortable overnight train connectivity between Vijayawada, the gateway to capital of Andhra Pradesh, Amravati with several major towns, serving the districts of Krishna, Guntur, Prakasham, Kurnool and Anantapur. The new train service is bound to give a boost to the economic prosperity of the region, the General Manager added. Provision of the new technology LHB coaches for the train, will act to make the journeys more safe and comfortable, he opined.
Ashok Kumar, Divisional Railway Manager, Vijayawada Division, SCR presented the vote of thanks.
The regular train services of the new train will commence from 16th July, 2016 Ex.Vijayawada and from 17thJuly, 2016 Ex.Dharmavaram as per the following schedule:-
Train No. 17215 Vijayawada-Dharmavaram Tri-Weekly Express will depart Vijayawada at 23:10 hrs on Monday, Wednesday & Saturday, arrive/depart Guntur at 23:50/23:55 hrs and arrive Dharmavaram at 10:45 hrs on the next day.
In the return direction, Train No. 17216 Dharmavaram-Vijayawada Tri-Weekly Express will depart Dharmavaram at 17:50 hrs on Tuesday, Thursday & Sunday, arrive/depart Guntur at 05:35/05:40 hrs and arrive Vijayawada at 06:50 hrs on the next day.
Enroute these trains will stop at Narasaraopet, Vinukonda, Markapur Road, Giddalur, Nandyal, Dhone, Gooty and Ananthapur stations in both directions. These trains will have 11 Coaches viz., one AC II Tier, two AC III Tier, six Sleeper Class coaches and two Power Car coaches. (NSS)