PM Modi flags off Secunderabad-Tirupati Vande Bharat train, Balaji journey shorter

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday flagged off the Secunderabad-Tirupati Vande Bharat Express train in Hyderabad.

PM Modi, who arrived in the city, flagged off the service from Secunderabad Railway station.

He boarded the stationary train at the railway station and interacted with schoolchildren.

The train will reduce the travel time between Secunderabad in Telangana and Tirupati in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, by almost three and a half hours and will be particularly beneficial for pilgrims.

On January 15, Modi had virtually flagged off the Vande Bharat train service between Secunderabad and the port city of Visakhapatnam in AP, which was the first such service connecting the two Telugu-speaking states.

Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and Union Minister for Culture and Tourism G Kishan Reddy were among those who were present.