Passengers are not using these trains because the fares are high, said Bhupesh Baghel.(FILE)
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Sunday said that passengers are not in favour of using Vande Bharat express trains due to the high fares of the tickets adding that passenger trains are shutting down on constant basis.
Speaking to reporters in Raipur, Bhupesh Baghel said," Passengers are not using these trains because the fares are high. The majority of the public uses passenger trains but they are getting shut down. The PM is inaugurating railway corridors but it is not for the people, it is for 'dropping' coal."
He further questioned the motive behind the flagging off of trains by the Prime Minister and said, "The Railway Minister has no work. He is only sent when there is an accident."
Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually flagged off nine Vande Bharat Express trains, and said that the speed and scale of infrastructure development are matching with aspirations of 140 crore Indians.
The new trains are Udaipur – Jaipur Vande Bharat Express, Tirunelveli-Madurai- Chennai Vande Bharat Express, Hyderabad –Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express, Vijayawada – Chennai (via Renigunta) Vande Bharat Express, Patna – Howrah Vande Bharat Express, Kasaragod - Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express, Rourkela - Bhubaneswar – Puri Vande Bharat Express, Ranchi – Howrah Vande Bharat Express and Jamnagar-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express.
These Vande Bharat trains will be the fastest trains along the routes of their operation and will help save considerable time for the passengers.
Prime Minister's Office (PMO) in a statement said that the introduction of these Vande Bharat trains will herald a new standard of rail service in the country.
"These trains, equipped with world-class amenities and advanced safety features, including Kavach technology, will be a key step towards providing modern, speedy and comfortable means of travel to common people, professionals, businessmen, student community and tourists," the statement said.
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