Overview
- Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the inaugural service on the Howrah–Guwahati corridor, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to flag it off in 15–20 days with the exact date to be confirmed.
- Fares on the route are set at about ₹2,300 for AC 3-tier, ₹3,000 for AC 2-tier and ₹3,600 for First AC, with meals included.
- The launch rake is a 16‑coach set with 11 AC 3-tier, four AC 2-tier and one First AC coach, offering a total capacity of 823 passengers for overnight travel.
- Final high‑speed trials on the Kota–Nagda section, supervised by the Commissioner of Railway Safety, reached 180 km/h with braking, vibration and ride‑stability checks declared satisfactory.
- Operational speeds on the corridor are expected to be about 120–130 km/h; two prototype rakes are ready and officials target roughly 12 sleeper sets in service by year‑end as production scales.