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Modi Flags Off First Vande Bharat Sleeper as Two-State Tour Launches Major Rail-Road Push

The two-day tour ties marquee transport rollouts to election-season outreach in Bengal and Assam.

Overview

  • From Malda on Jan 17, the Prime Minister is flagging off the HowrahGuwahati (Kamakhya) Vande Bharat Sleeper and launching rail and road works worth over ₹3,250 crore.
  • He is also virtually starting four Amrit Bharat Express services and two new LHB-coach trains, alongside the four-laning of the DhupguriFalakata stretch of NH-31D.
  • Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw outlined the sleeper’s coach mix (11 AC 3-tier, 4 AC 2-tier, 1 AC First Class) and indicative fares of about ₹2,300, ₹3,000 and ₹3,600, with the route time cut by roughly 2.5 hours.
  • In Guwahati on Jan 17 evening, Modi is scheduled to attend the Bagurumba Dwhou 2026 cultural programme featuring over 10,000 Bodo performers.
  • On Jan 18, he plans the bhoomi pujan for the ₹6,950–6,957 crore, 86-km Kaziranga elevated corridor and virtual flag-offs for Amrit Bharat trains KamakhyaRohtak and DibrugarhLucknow, followed by separate project launches of about ₹830 crore in Singur.