PM Modi to inaugurate new Vande Bharat Express on Chennai-Bengaluru-Mysuru route on March 12

Chennai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually flag off the inaugural run of the Vande Bharat Express between Dr MGR Chennai Central and Mysuru on March 12, Southern Railway has said.

The Prime Minister will also inaugurate the extended Vande Bharat Service from Mangaluru Central to Thiruvananthapuram Central, and the new Kollam–Tirupati Express, through video conferencing.

The Chennai–Bengaluru–Mysuru train is the second Vande Bharat Express in this section. The first in this route was launched in 2022.

The inaugural run of Train No 20664 Dr MGR Chennai Central–SMVT Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express will depart from Chennai at 09.15 hours and arrive in Bengaluru at 14.20 hours on Tuesday, with stops in Katpadi and Krishnarajapuram.

However, the regular service will begin only on March 14, as the train runs all days of the week, except Wednesdays.

Initially, the train will only run between Chennai and Bengaluru till April 4 with stops in Katpadi and Krishnarajapuram; the full service between Chennai and Mysuru will begin only on April 5, according to a Southern Railway release.

From March 14 to April 4, Train No 20664 Dr MGR Chennai Central–Mysuru Vande Bharat Express will leave Chennai Central at 17.00 hours and reach SMVT Bengaluru at 21.25 hours, completing the distance of 358 km in four hours and 25 minutes.

In the return direction, Train No 20663 will leave SMVT Bengaluru at 07.50 hrs and reach Dr MGR Chennai Central at 12.25 hrs, taking four hours and 35 minutes.

From April 5 onwards, when the full service begins, Train No 20663 Mysuru–Dr MGR Chennai Central Vande Bharat Express (except Wednesdays) will leave Mysuru at 06.00 hrs and reach Chennai at 12.25 hrs, covering the distance of 497 km in six hours and 25 minutes.

The train will stop at Mandya, Bengaluru, Krishnarajapuram and Katpadi en route.

In the return direction, Train No 20664 Dr MGR Chennai Central–Mysuru Vande Bharat Express (except Wednesdays) will leave Chennai at 17.00 hrs and reach Mysuru at 23.20 hrs, taking six hours and 20 minutes.