Nagpur: The popularity of Vande Bharat trains continues to rise, prompting the Railway Board to expand the capacity of several routes, including the Nagpur-Indore-Nagpur service. From its current 8-coach formation, the train will soon double its capacity to 16 coaches to meet the growing passenger demand.
The semi-high-speed service between Nagpur and Indore, launched in the last week of June, has witnessed overwhelming response from travellers. With primary maintenance handled by the West Central Railway, the train was introduced to strengthen connectivity between Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, linking business hub Indore with Nagpur.
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18 Aug 2025
Railway officials said that passenger traffic has been particularly strong due to strategic halts at Bhopal and Ujjain. While Bhopal draws heavy business and official travellers, Ujjain’s status as a major pilgrimage destination has added to the surge. The train’s reduced travel time compared to conventional express services has also made it a preferred choice, easing the pressure of waitlisted tickets.
“The demand pattern between Nagpur and Bhopal, coupled with pilgrimage traffic to Ujjain, has justified the increase in capacity,” a senior railway source said.
The Railway Board based its decision on occupancy data and ticket sales recorded till August 31. Going forward, rakes with 16 and 20 coaches will be allocated to routes showing consistently high demand.
Along with the Nagpur–Indore Vande Bharat, six other trains have been cleared for capacity enhancement:
• Mangaluru Central-Thiruvananthapuram Central (20631/32)
• Secunderabad-Tirupati (20701/02)
• Chennai Egmore-Tirunelveli (20665/66)
• Madurai-Bengaluru Cantt (20671/72)
• Deoghar-Varanasi (22499/00)
• Howrah-Rourkela (20871/72)
With plans to introduce 20-chair car formations in the future, officials believe Vande Bharat will continue to expand its reach, catering to both business and pilgrimage travel across zones.
