Great day for J&K’s commerce, connectivity: PM Modi

Jammu, Aug 9: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will virtually flag off the new Vande Bharat Express train between Katra and Amritsar on Sunday, has commended the arrival of the maiden freight train to Kashmir by portraying it as “great day for commerce, connectivity in J&K.”

Prime Minister’s remark was in response to the post of Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw on microblogging site ‘X’ with a video capturing historic journey of “first freight train to the Kashmir Valley” criss-crossing tunnels and iconic Chenab and Anji bridges to reach its final destination of Anantnag Railway Station.

“Great day for commerce and connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir. It will enhance both progress and prosperity,” PM Modi posted.

“With better access to India and global markets, the Valley’s farmers, artisans, and entrepreneurs are set to benefit with the freight trains. The move marks a historic step towards economic growth, employment, and global recognition of Kashmir’s unique produce,” railway authorities have asserted while explaining its significance.

“This will be a major gamechanger in the logistics sector of J&K as now the traffic like foodgrain, cement, fertiliser among various other commodities can go to the valley directly. This is a major step towards enhancing economic activity in the Kashmir Valley. It also marks an important milestone in the ongoing development of the Baramulla-Srinagar-Banihal railway corridor, which is part of the larger Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project,” they said.

In another major rail connectivity push to Jammu and Kashmir, on August 10, the PM will virtually flag off the Amritsar to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Vande Bharat Express train.

It will be among three Vande Bharat Express trains to be flagged off by the Prime Minister, virtually from Bengaluru.

The other two Vande Bharat Express trains will be from Bengaluru to Belagavi, and Nagpur (Ajni) to Pune.

These high-speed trains are aimed at significantly enhancing regional connectivity, reducing travel time and providing a world-class travel experience to the passengers.

The new Vande Bharat train will run between the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Railway Station of Jammu Division of Northern Railway and Amritsar Railway Station of Ferozepur Division via Jammu-Pathankot-Jalandhar Vyas.

This Vande Bharat Train will run 6 days a week, except Tuesday.

“This Vande Bharat – train No 26406- will run from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra to Amritsar Railway Station and Train No 26405 will run from Amritsar Railway Station to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra,” Uchit Singhal, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager (DCM), Jammu (Railway) Division, said.

As per the timetable released by the railway authorities, train number 26407 (Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra- Amritsar train) will depart from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra at 6:40 am and reach Amritsar at 12:20 pm. On the way, it will stop at stations like Jammu, Pathankot Cantt, Jalandhar City, and Vyas.

Similarly, train number 26405 (Amritsar-Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra train) will depart from Amritsar at 4:25 pm and reach Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra at 10 pm.

This train, on the way, will halt at railway stations like Vyas, Jalandhar City, Pathankot Cantt, and Jammu.

“This Vande Bharat train will benefit the passengers going to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra – a holy place for Hindus due to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi shrine. Through it (train service), the passengers can visit Shri Mata Vaishno Devi and return to their station in less time,” Singal said.

The 370 km distance will be covered in five hours and 40 minutes.