For residents of Belgaum, the Vande Bharat train service has been an elusive aspiration. Presently, the service only operates between Bengaluru and Hubballi-Dharwad. Although there was a trial run to Belgaum, regular services have not commenced yet. The South Western Railway consistently cites various reasons for the delay in launching the Vande Bharat train service to Belgaum.
When the Vande Bharat train service was introduced between Bengaluru, Hubballi, and Dharwad, there was a request to extend it to Belgaum.
In December 2022, during a visit to Belgaum, then Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai assured action to extend the Vande Bharat train service to Belgaum. In 2023, the train commenced its journey from Bengaluru to Hubballi-Dharwad, but it did not extend to Belgaum.
In November 2023, a test run of the train was conducted up to Belgaum, and it was deemed successful.
When railway activists from Belgaum queried the Railway authorities about this matter, they responded that extending the train would lengthen the journey by 10 hours, thus contradicting the project’s objective.
The railway activists pointed out that trains linking other cities, such as Bengaluru-Kalaburgi, Bengaluru-Secunderabad, and Mangalore-Thiruvananthapuram, have journey durations exceeding 10 hours.
Shreyas YM, an RTI activist who requested information from the Railway department, stated that the Railway department is providing several explanations for the train not being extended to Belgaum.
The railway department responded that the train couldn’t be extended to Belgaum due to the absence of a water filling facility and overhead electrification (OHE) at Belgaum station. However, the OHE installation was finalized at Belgaum station in January. Additionally, eight new water tanks were installed to facilitate the train’s water filling requirements.
In response to another RTI query, the Railway department stated that there is inadequate platform infrastructure for trains at Belgaum station. Railway activists claim that there are no train services at Belgaum station between 12:30 pm and 2:30 pm.
Railway activist Sridhar Hulikavi lamented the lack of sufficient explanation from the South Western Railways regarding the decision to not extend the train service for the residents of Belgaum.
In November 2023, the trial run of the Vande Bharat train occurred, following which the paperwork for the train’s expansion was supposed to be forwarded to the Union Ministry of Railways. However, as per information obtained through the Right to Information, it has been claimed that the documentation remains in the possession of the South Western Railway.
Member of Rajya Sabha, Iranna Kadadi, mentioned that once the model code of conduct concludes, discussions will be conducted with railway officials to address any hindrances in extending the Vande Bharat train service to Belgaum.
