Kerala's First Vande Bharat Express Completes Second Trial Run, PM Modi To Flag Off Train On April 25

During the train run, the first stop of the Vande Bharat Express was at Kollam, followed by Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod.

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An official said that Kerala`s first Vande Bharat Express train completed its second trial run on Wednesday from here to Kasaragod in 7 hours and 50 minutes. The train, which departed Thiruvananthapuram at 5.20 a.m., arrived at Kasaragod at 1.10 p.m. The train's first trial run was conducted on Monday from Thiruvananthapuram to Kannur.

On Tuesday, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had announced that the Vande Bharat Express will be extended till Kasaragod instead of ending at Kannur. The decision to extend the service was taken following requests from BJP and Congress leaders.

Several people welcomed the train at Kasaragod station, including Congress MP Rajmohan Unnithan, who also requested that the train service be extended to Kasaragod. The first stop was at Kollam, followed by Kottayam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Kannur, and Kasaragod. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the Vande Bharat Express from Thiruvananthapuram on April 25.

Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor, took to his Twitter handle and said, "Recalling my tweets of fourteen months ago suggesting #VandeBharat trains for Kerala. Delighted that @AshwiniVaishnaw has done just that. Looking forward to attending @narendramodi`s flagging off of the first train from Thiruvananthapuram on April 25. Progress must be beyond politics."