Vande Bharat Express goes without AC, fan, lights for an hour
New Delhi: Passengers on board the Varanasi-Delhi Vande Bharat Express were on Sunday stranded inside the train for around an hour without fan, air conditioning and lights when its auxiliary converter failed, officials said on Sunday.
The train's AC stopped working 10 minutes before reaching Allahabad station at 4:50 pm. The defect was rectified, cooling ensured and it left at around 6.00 pm, they said.
During this time, the train was without basic facilities stranded at Allahabad. In an earlier incident in March, a minor fire broke out in the transformer of a coach of the railways' ambitious train.
Earlier this year, the production of this self-propelled engine-less train sets was stopped over allegations of favouritism and lack of transparency. In July, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal met representatives of manufacturers and promised a transparent level-playing field to all of them.
On February 15, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the New Delhi-Varanasi Vande Bharat Express, popularly known as Train 18.
It is an indigenous electric multiple unit (EMU) manufactured by the Chennai-based Integrated Coach Factory (ICF). The semi-high speed train that can run up to a maximum speed of 160 km/hour has electrically operated, automatic sliding doors similar to those in metro coaches. Built at a cost of Rs 100 crore, each train has 16 compartments, with two first class coaches.
A day after its inaugural run in February, the train ran into trouble when a malfunction of the brake system jammed the wheel near the Tundla railway station, some 200 km from Delhi.
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2 killed, 5 injured in firing after mob storms CRPF camp in Manipur's Bishnupur: State home minister
Imphal (PTI): Manipur Home Minister Govindas Konthoujam on Tuesday said two persons were killed and five others injured in firing after a mob stormed a CRPF camp in Bishnupur district.
A large number of youths and women held a protest against the killing of two children in a bomb attack by suspected militants in Moirang Tronglaobi area earlier in the day, he said.
The protesters stormed the CRPF camp near Gelmol, a few 100 metres from the bomb attack site, burnt vehicles and vandalised properties there, he said.
"I had urged the protesters not to enter the CRPF camp and to allow security forces to focus on conducting an operation to apprehend those involved in the bomb attack," the minister said.
But the demonstrators did not pay heed to the appeal.
"They stormed the CRPF camp, burnt vehicles and vandalised portions of the camp, leading to firing by security personnel. They fired either in self-defence or in anger. Two persons, unfortunately, died in the firing, while five others sustained bullet injuries," the state home minister said.
