Maharashtra Minister of Forest and Culture Sudhir Mungantiwar wrote to the Union Railway Minister Ashwini Kumar requesting for Vande Bharat Express train services between Nagpur and Hyderabad.
The letter comes ahead of the inauguration of the Vande Bharat train service connecting Nagpur and Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 11
Mungantiwar, in his letter to the railway minister on Wednesday, stated that at least four districts in the Vidarbha region – Chandrapur, Bhandara, Gondia, and Nagpur – have close trade relations with Hyderabad due to its geographical proximity.
“I have requested Union minister Ashwini Kumar to start the Nagpur-Hyderabad Vande Bharat Services. As the four districts in Vidarbha have close trade relations and are interdependent, a lot of people from these districts commute between Nagpur and Hyderabad daily,” Mungantiwar told reporters.
Highlighting the importance of Nagpur in terms of trade and tourism, the minister said, “Nagpur is located at the center of India and lies close to the states of Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Chhattisgarh. Hyderabad is a big city in southern India. Similarly, Nagpur which is the second capital of Maharashtra is also an important city.”
According to Mungantiwar, although there are 22 trains connecting the 575 km stretch, there is a need for superfast train services between Hyderabad and Nagpur.
Once operational, the Bharat train service will also be beneficial for the districts of Bhandara, Chandrapur, and Gondia, he said.
“The tourism potential of Vidarbha region is growing rapidly with people across the country and abroad visiting Tadoba (in Chandrapur ) for tiger safari. There are other tourist attractions such as Pench, Hemalkasa, Chikhaldhara, etc in the region. The Vande Bharat train services will be of immense help to tourists who arrive in Nagpur. Therefore, the railway ministry should give the consent to start the services at the earliest,” said Mungantiwar.
👉 Click here to read the latest Gujarat news on TheLiveAhmedabad.com