Central Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnav flagged off the new Vande Bharat Sleeper Express from Bangalore’s Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminal (SMVT) to Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) on 1 November
Dignitaries present included Union Minister Prahlad Joshi, Union Minister H. D. Kumaraswamy, State Rail Minister V. Somanna and State Minister Shobha Karandlaje
Service details
The train will depart SMVT at 19:45 and reach CSMT at 11:55 the next day. On the return it will leave CSMT at 20:10 and arrive SMVT at 12:00. The service will run six days a week, not on Monday from Bangalore and not on Tuesday from Mumbai
Major stations on the route include Anantpur, Guntakal, Raichur, Yadgir, Kalaburagi, Solapur, Pune and Kalyan
Future plans for Karnataka
Minister Vaishnav said the next Vande Bharat sleeper service for Karnataka will start from Bangalore, linking North Karnataka via Hubli to Pune and Mumbai
He also said the Bangalore‑Mangaluru Vande Bharat Express will start in a few weeks once electrification and trial work on the route are completed
Rail development in Karnataka
State Rail Minister V. Somanna said railway infrastructure projects worth ₹52,000 crore are under way in Karnataka, covering overbridges, underbridges and station modernisation
He added that after safety improvements, rail accidents have fallen from 135 to 16
What’s next
The new Vande Bharat sleeper train provides a night‑travel option between Bangalore and Mumbai, benefiting professionals, entrepreneurs, students and tourists