Amrit Bharat, Vande Bharat trains arrive at Ayodhya, to be flagged off by PM Modi today

AYODHYA: Amid the festive air in Ayodhya and the euphoria around the consecration of the grand Ram Temple on January 22 next year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in the temple town on Saturday to flag off Amrit Bharat and Vande Bharat trains among other projects.

The new trains have already rolled into the Ayodhya Cantonment Railway station and are all set to be flagged off by PM Modi.

He will flag off two Amrit Bharat and six Vande Bharat trains from the redeveloped Ayodhya Dham Railway Station during his visit to the temple town on Saturday.

Amrit Bharat is a new category of superfast passenger trains, equipped with the LHB push-pull feature.

However, these trains come with non-air-conditioned coaches.

This train has locos at both ends for better acceleration. It provides improved facilities for rail passengers, like beautifully designed seats, better luggage racks, mobile charging points with suitable mobile holders, LED lights, CCTV, and a public information system, among others.

The new Amrit Bharat trains that will ply as Darbhanga-Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Amrit Bharat Express and Malda Town-Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminus (Bengaluru) Amrit Bharat Express.

The Vande Bharat trains to be flagged off include Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express; Amritsar-Delhi Vande Bharat Express; Coimbatore-Bangalore Cantt Vande Bharat Express; Mangalore-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express; Jalna-Mumbai Vande Bharat Express and Ayodhya-Anand Vihar Terminal Vande Bharat Express.

Prime Minister will also dedicate to the nation three railway projects worth Rs 2300 crore to strengthen rail infrastructure in the region.

The projects include the Rooma Chakeri-Chanderi third line project; Jaunpur-Tulsi Nagar, Akbarpur-Ayodhya, Sohawal-Patranga and Safdarganj-Rasauli sections of the Jaunpur-Ayodhya-Barabanki doubling project; and doubling and electrification project of the Malhaur-Daliganj railway section.

Phase I of the redeveloped Ayodhya Railway Station, known as Ayodhya Dham Junction Railway Station is to be inaugurated today by PM Modi and is developed at a cost of more than Rs 240 crore.

The three-storey railway station building is equipped with all modern features such as lifts, escalators, food plazas, shops for puja needs, cloakrooms, child care rooms, and waiting halls. The station will be ‘accessible for all’ and will be an ‘IGBC-certified green station building’.

PM Modi will also inaugurate the newly built Ayodhya Airport named Maharishi Valmiki International Airport Ayodhya Dham.

Phase 1 of the state-of-the-art airport has been developed at a cost of more than Rs 1450 crore.

The airport’s terminal building will have an area of 6500 sqm, equipped to serve about 10 lakh passengers annually.

The facade of the terminal building depicts the temple architecture of the upcoming Shri Ram Mandir of Ayodhya. The interiors of the terminal building are decorated with local art, paintings and murals depicting the life of Bhagwan Shri Ram.

The terminal building of Ayodhya Airport is also equipped with various sustainability features, like an insulated roofing system, LED lighting, rainwater harvesting, landscaping with fountains, a water treatment plant, a sewage treatment plant, a solar power plant and many other such features have been provided to meet GRIHA – 5-star ratings.

The airport will improve connectivity in the region, leading to a boost in tourism and business activities while generating new employment opportunities