Monday, May 20

Congress Vs Ashwini Vaishnaw On Vande Bharat Occupancy

Edited by Fazal Rahman Chembulangad
Congress Vs Ashwini Vaishnaw On Vande Bharat Occupancy (Photo on X Ashwini Vaishnaw (मोदी का परिवार) @AshwiniVaishnaw)

Following the Congress Kerala unit’s claim that Vande Bharat trains have a low occupancy rate, Union Minister for Railway, Ashwini Vaishnaw countered saying that it is time to “prick the bubble of Congress lies”. In a post on his social media platform X, the railway minister further wrote, “The occupancy of Vande Bharat trains on 7th May is 98%. Occupancy in FY 2024-25 (till 7th May) is 103%.”

The Minister also asked if the Congress wanted Vande Bharat to stop.

Hitting back at the Union Minister, Congress challenged the minister to release occupancy data for 51 trains individually in a table, and asked, “are you up for the challenge, Minister?”

The Congress also shared a The Hindu news report about 50 percentage occupancy in Mangaluru-Madgaon Vande Bharat Express.

“Thank you for your response, @AshwiniVaishnaw.  The 98% figure lacks context. Occupancy can exceed 200%. For instance, if a passenger travels from Kasargod to Kozhikode, another from Kozhikode to Kochi, and a third from Kochi to Thiruvananthapuram, the seat’s occupancy is 300%. Occupancy varies widely; some trains exceed 100%, others fall below 50%. Your response merely offers the average across all Vande Bharat trains, which is good enough to fool ‘Modi Ka Parivar’ members but not us!,” the post reads. 

The Congress unit in Kerala had on Wednesday claimed that the Vande Bharat trains were running empty and has extremely high fares. The Congress in its series of posts explaining the operational dynamics of Vande Bharat cited an analysis of IRCTC booking data and said more than 50 percent of Vande Bharat trains were running with empty or partially filled seats on different routes across the country.

The Congress in its post said that the data, sourced from IRCTC just hours before train departures, focuses solely on the General category, excluding Tatkal bookings. “Despite the holiday season prompting increased travel among families nationwide, bookings for Vande Bharat remain surprisingly low.”

The Congress Kerala X handle further said that the data highlights a concerning trend regarding economic disparities. “Affluent regions demonstrate a higher ability to afford Vande Bharat, while economically disadvantaged areas struggle to access these costly services.”

Showing the screen record of the IRCTC application, the handle in its follow-up post said, “Solapur (row-4) Vande Bharat, 277 seats are vacant, but almost all other trains are in the Waiting List. This means there is a huge demand for trains, but not this expensive one.”

“This scenario isn’t isolated; similar patterns emerge across various routes. When a Garib Rath offers tickets at ₹770, the exorbitant ₹1,720 fare of Vande Bharat becomes prohibitive for ordinary travellers. This scenario isn’t isolated; similar patterns emerge across various routes. When a Garib Rath offers tickets at ₹770, the exorbitant ₹1,720 fare of Vande Bharat becomes prohibitive for ordinary travellers.”

In a separate post, the handle said that while acknowledging the need to serve diverse passenger demographics, the Railway’s oversight of the lower-middle-class and impoverished communities was evident. Inadequate provision for the working class, coupled with safety concerns seen in incidents like Balasore, underscore systemic neglect, it added.

“The excessive focus on Vande Bharat is the real issue. Vande Bharats are good when a lot of our population can afford it. For that economic growth is really important. This Govt has been a disaster on that front and hence you see these expensive trains running empty,” the post reads.