Boasting a variety of features, Vande Bharat Express set to run from Saturday

New Delhi: The Delhi-Katra Vande Bharat Express, flagged off on Thursday, boasts of a variety of features onboard including plastic bottle crusher machines, a spacious pantry with a deep freezer, revolving seats and cattle guard, officials said on Thursday.

The train was flagged off from New Delhi Railway Station by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Union ministers Jitendra Singh and Harsh Vardhan were also present.

The train to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi in Katra will run at a maximum speed of 130 km/hour and will cover the distance in eight hours, cutting the travel time by four hours.

The train boasts of having bottle crushing machines for disposing of plastic bottles in view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message against single-use plastic, an official said.

The train also has revolving seats that be turned around to 180 degrees, 16 air-conditioned coaches, including two executive class coaches and sensor doors that connect the coaches. 

The train has continuous windows and the glasses have been provided with anti-spall films, the official said. Roller blind sunscreen has been provided on the lookout glass to protect train pilots from glare and improved insulation has been provided to reduce the noise level in the driver's cab.

Phone handsets have been provided for direct communication between train pilots and guard. Commercial run of the train will begin from October 5 and it will run on all days of the week except Tuesday.

(With inputs from PTI)