(MENAFN- Live Mint) Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday the Indian Railways has made big strides in addressing long-standing issues and will not stop till it becomes a guarantee of comfortable travel for all sections of society.
Modi said that the nation was inching towards the goal of Viksit Bharat with modernisation and expansion of Vande Bharat trains .
“Through its hard work over the years, the railways has made big strides in addressing long-standing issues and offered new hopes and solutions. We will not stop until the Indian Railways becomes a guarantee of comfortable travel for everyone,” the prime minister said.
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His remarks came against the backdrop of railway accidents that prompted the opposition to question the government's track record on rail safety.
Further, Modi said that modern rail infrastructure was a strong pillar of the vision of Viksit Bharat.
More than ₹2.5 lakh crore was allocated to the railways in this year's budget and the government was connecting Indian Railways with high-tech services to transform its old image, he added.
On Saturday, PM Modi flagged off three new Vande Bharat Express trains via videoconferencing.
The three new Vande Bharat trains will run between Meerut and Lucknow, Madurai and Bengaluru, and Chennai and Nagercoil.
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The Meerut -Lucknow Vande Bharat Express will help passengers save around an hour compared to the current fastest train between the two cities.
The Chennai Egmore-Nagercoil Vande Bharat Express and the Madurai-Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express will cut down travel time by more than two hours and around one-and-a-half hours, respectively.
Underlining that rapid development of southern states was imperative to accomplish the goal of Viksit Bharat, he said that the development of Tamil Nadu, along with the entire southern India, was the government's priority.
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Modi said that more than ₹6,000 crore was allocated for Tamil Nadu's rail budget this year, seven times more than in 2014.
For Karnataka, a budget of more than ₹7,000 crore was allocated in this year's budget, which was nine times higher than in 2014.
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