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Indian Railways has announced three new weekly train services connecting Bengaluru with different parts of West Bengal, giving a big boost to long-distance rail travel between the south and east of India.
Amrit Bharat Express
One of the new trains will be the Amrit Bharat Express running between Sir M Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT), Bengaluru, and Alipurduar in northern West Bengal. This will be the second Amrit Bharat train on the Bengaluru-West Bengal route, after the earlier service to Malda that started in 2023. The Amrit Bharat Express is designed to be comfortable but affordable for long journeys, with modern facilities and many non-AC sleeper and general coaches.
According to the rail timetable, the Amrit Bharat Express will leave Bengaluru each Saturday and reach Alipurduar on Monday. It will then start back from Alipurduar the same Monday and return to Bengaluru by Thursday. These trains are pulled by modern WAP-5 locomotives and can run at speeds up to about 130 km/h. The coaches include features like CCTV cameras, fire-resistant seats, mobile charging points, water holders, and pantry cars to make travel easier for passengers.
Two Additional Weekly Trains
In addition to this Amrit Bharat train, two more weekly trains have been approved from SMVT Bengaluru to Balurghat and Radhikapur in West Bengal. These were originally planned as Amrit Bharat services but will now operate as standard express trains.
Commuters have welcomed these new connections, especially since there is high travel demand between Bengaluru and eastern states. However, many people also say that rail links from Bengaluru to other regions like Bihar and Jharkhand should be improved further in the future.
