May 06, 2026 10:44 pm (IST)

Make this your homepage

News

Who after Mamata in Bengal? Amit Shah to meet BJP MLA-elects ahead of May 9 oath | Vijay’s TVK seeks Congress, Left support after falling short of majority in Tamil Nadu | Jolt to TMC! Supreme Court rejects plea challenging central staff deployment at Bengal counting centres | Bangladesh MP warns of refugee crisis if BJP wins West Bengal polls | Diplomatic row: Bangladesh summons Indian envoy over Himanta Biswa Sarma remarks | Supreme Court grants Pawan Khera anticipatory bail in case over allegations against Himanta Biswa Sarma's wife | ‘Not necessary to humiliate me with arrest’: Pawan Khera to SC over remarks on Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife | ‘Let’s not choose for people capable of choosing’: Supreme Court to Centre on teen pregnancy termination | I-PAC co-founder Vinesh Chandel gets bail after Bengal polls conclude | Exit Polls Give Bengal to BJP—But One Survey Begs to Differ

Vande Bharat

Modi flagging off first Vande Bharat sleeper train. Photo: Screen-grab/X video

PM Modi flags off first Vande Bharat Sleeper from Bengal — no waiting list, only confirmed berths!

India Blooms News Service | @indiablooms | Jan 17, 2026, at 02:09 pm

Kolkata/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday flagged off the country’s first Vande Bharat Sleeper Train at Malda in West Bengal.

The Prime Minister interacted with students present at the launch event before formally inaugurating the premium service.

#WATCH | Prime Minister @narendramodi flags off India’s first Vande Bharat Sleeper Train (Howrah–Kamakhya) from Malda Town station, West Bengal.@PMOIndia @RailMinIndia @AshwiniVaishnaw #WestBengal #Malda #VandeBharatSleeper #Guwahati #InfrastructureDevelopment pic.twitter.com/gvKrXz2mgY
— DD News (@DDNewslive) January 17, 2026

The new train is expected to benefit passengers from several districts, including Kamrup Metropolitan and Bongaigaon in Assam, and Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri, Malda, Murshidabad, Purba Bardhaman, Hooghly and Howrah in West Bengal.

The Vande Bharat Sleeper will comprise 16 fully air-conditioned coaches — 11 AC three-tier, four AC two-tier and one first-class AC coach — with a total capacity of around 823 passengers.

In a departure from existing long-distance services, the train will operate without RAC or waiting-list tickets, allowing only confirmed berths.

#WATCH | Before flagging off India’s first Vande Bharat Sleeper Train from Malda Town, PM @narendramodi interacts with students and loco pilots on board.@RailMinIndia @AshwiniVaishnaw #WestBengal #Malda #VandeBharatSleeper #Guwahati #InfrastructureDevelopment pic.twitter.com/KOMszhM9iF
— DD News (@DDNewslive) January 17, 2026

Tickets can be booked digitally through the IRCTC platform, with concessions available for women, senior citizens, persons with disabilities and duty pass holders.

The launch comes months ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections scheduled for this summer.

#Vande Bharat Sleeper launch # PM Modi Malda # first sleeper Vande Bharat # Howrah Guwahati sleeper # no waiting list train India # IRCTC Vande Bharat booking # Bengal rail projects # Modi Bengal visit

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.