Overview
- Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw approved a Vande Bharat Sleeper between KSR Bengaluru and Mumbai CSMT in a letter dated April 5, with route, stops, fares and launch date still to be finalised.
- The first sleeper service, launched January 17 on the Howrah–Kamakhya corridor, carried 1.21 lakh passengers on its first 119 trips at over 100% occupancy and cut journey time on that route by up to six hours.
- Vande Bharat trains recorded about 3.98 crore passengers in FY 2025–26, up roughly 34% year on year, with 162 trains now in service and more than 9.1 crore passengers since 2019.
- Indian Railways targets 12 sleeper rakes by December 2026 within a planned build of about 260 trainsets, while the RVNL-led joint venture’s prototype is now slated for testing within a year after officials cautioned it may slip beyond June 2026.
- For travelers between Mumbai and Bengaluru, the new sleeper is expected to shorten today’s 20–22 hour trips, though reported 14–16 hour timings remain estimates until final timetables are issued.