Bhuj-Ahmedabad Vande Metro renamed Namo Bharat Rapid Rail hours before inauguration
Bhuj (Gujarat) Sep 16: The Railway Ministry has renamed the Bhuj-Ahmedabad Vande Metro to Namo Bharat Rapid Rail hours before its inaugural run on Monday, according to a spokesperson.
The service will be flagged off from the Bhuj railway station at 4:15 pm virtually by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who will be present in Ahmedabad, he said.
The Rapid Rail, which aims to enhance intercity connectivity, will cover 359 km distance from Bhuj to Ahmedabad in 5:45 hours. In between, the train will stop at nine stations.
For the public, the regular service will start on September 17 from Ahmedabad. The total journey will cost Rs 455.
"The ministry has decided to rename Vande Metro to Namo Bharat Rapid Rail," the Railway spokesperson said.
According to the Railway Ministry, while the other metros cover only short distances, Namo Bharat trains will connect the heart of Ahmedabad with its peripheral cities.
Featuring 12 coaches with seating for 1,150 passengers, the Rapid Rail offers a host of innovative features, it said. "With ergonomically designed seats, fully air-conditioned cabins and modular interiors, it definitely proves to be superior to other metros."
A significant upgrade, according to the Ministry, from traditional suburban trains and metro coaches is its modular design that includes ejector-based vacuum evacuation toilets.
"The train offers faster journeys between mid-distance cities. Its rapid acceleration and deceleration contribute to efficient travel while driving cabs at both ends eliminates turnaround time," it added.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
