Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday launched the Vande Bharat Express that will run between Delhi and Katra in Jammu and Kashmir, PTI reported. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said this was a “Navratri gift” to residents of Jammu as well as devotees of Vaishnodevi.

Shah also said the express train, which was earlier known as Train 18, was a “big gift” and would ensure development in the state and boost religious tourism.

The home minister said the Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, which provided special status to Jammu and Kashmir until Centre’s August 5 order, had been the “biggest roadblock” in the state’s development, according to NDTV. “Before the abrogation of Article 370, there were many obstacles in Jammu and Kashmir’s path to development,” he said. “In the next 10 years, Jammu and Kashmir will be one of the most developed states.” He thanked the railways for completing the project on time.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and Union Minister Jitendra Singh accompanied Shah at the launch. “Railways will connect country from Kashmir to Kanyakumari before 15th August, 2022,” Goyal said.

On Tuesday, the Indian Railways had said the train, which will start commercial operations on October 5, will be available through the week except on Tuesdays. The Vande Bharat Express has two executive air-conditioned chair cars and 12 chair car coaches.

It will stop at Ambala Cantonment, Ludhiana, and Jammu Tawi stations and the trip will cost Rs 1,630 for the chair car and Rs 3,015 in the air-conditioned bogies. The first Vande Bharat Express runs between Delhi and Varanasi, according to PTI. The train is equipped with WiFi facilities, bio-vacuum toilets, GPS-based infotainment, camera surveillance, among other things.

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