The Union Minister, the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu & Kashmir, and the deputy Chief minister thanked Prime Minister Modi for launching another Vande Bharat train.
On Sunday, Union Minister Jitendra Singh, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, and Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary expressed their gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for approving a new Vande Bharat train connecting the holy towns of Katra and Amritsar.
They highlighted that
transport infrastructure, especially in the railway sector, has seen remarkable
growth in the Union Territory over the past 11 years.
Earlier
in the day, PM Modi flagged off three Vande Bharat Express trains — Bengaluru
to Belagavi, Amritsar to Katra, and Nagpur (Ajni) to Pune.
Speaking on board the newly launched Katra-Amritsar train, Jitendra Singh noted that this is the fourth Vande Bharat Express to serve Jammu and Kashmir.
He praised
PM Modi for prioritizing the region since taking office in 2014, saying he was
unsure if any other railway station in the country hosts four Vande Bharat
trains.
Singh
also recalled that when PM Modi assumed power, the railway project connecting
Kashmir with the rest of India was nearly abandoned — but under his leadership,
it has gained new momentum.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh recalled that Prime Minister Modi’s 2014 election campaign began with a visit to the Vaishno Devi shrine. After becoming Prime Minister, Modi dedicated the Katra railway station to the nation.
When Vande Bharat trains were first introduced, the second train in the country was approved for the Katra-Delhi route.
In the next phase of the rollout, Jammu and Kashmir received yet another Vande Bharat train.
Singh added that in June this year, PM Modi visited Katra to flag off two Vande Bharat trains from Katra to Srinagar, celebrating the
completion of the
decades-old national railway project connecting Kashmir with Kanyakumari. These
trains will eventually run between Srinagar and Jammu.
He noted that the Vaishno Devi shrine has been a witness to all these developments over the last 11 years.
The first train reached Jammu and Kashmir in 1972, and it
has taken more than 50 years to finally connect Kashmir to the rest of India by
rail.
Lieutenant
Governor Manoj Sinha thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for introducing the
Vande Bharat train service between Amritsar and Katra.
“Grateful to PM Narendra Modi for flagging off the Vande Bharat Train between Amritsar and Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra Station.
Under the Prime Minister’s
leadership, Jammu and Kashmir’s transport infrastructure, especially in
railways, has seen unprecedented growth. This new train will make travel easier
for devotees of Mata Vaishno Devi and boost the local economy,” Sinha wrote in
a post on X.
He also
mentioned the arrival of the first freight train at Anantnag station in south
Kashmir from Punjab on Saturday, calling it a major milestone for the region’s
transport network and trade.
Speaking at the Katra railway station before the flag-off ceremony, Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary praised Prime Minister Modi for turning the long-awaited dream of connecting Kashmir to the rest of India by rail into reality.
“We are fortunate to see the dreams of our elders coming true under Modi’s leadership. On June 6, our Prime Minister and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah flagged off the first train from Katra to Kashmir — a historic moment,
especially since many
once believed the train could never reach Kashmir due to its past association
with terrorism. But the region has witnessed rapid development,” Choudhary
said.
He also welcomed the launch of the new Vande Bharat train service between Katra and Amritsar, calling it a proud moment for the people.
The train, he noted, will
connect two of the country’s most revered shrines — the Vaishno Devi temple in
Katra and the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
Choudhary thanked Prime Minister Modi and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for developing the railway network, saying
it will create jobs and boost tourism in
the region. He also urged that the network be expanded to include Rajouri and
Poonch districts.
He praised Union Minister Jitendra Singh for working from the Prime Minister’s Office to get several public-focused projects approved for Jammu and Kashmir.
