Indian Railways ki Vande Bharat Express ab sirf flat tracks par nahi, balki mushkil pahadi ilakon mein bhi daudegi! South Western Railway (SWR) ne Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road ke challenging route par iski testing shuru kar di hai. Yeh safety tests, khaas kar automatic emergency braking system ke liye, train ke future ko decide karenge.
Dekho bhai, SWR ne Vande Bharat Express ka safety test shuru kar diya hai Western Ghats ke ek dum mushkil Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road section par. Asal mein, yeh Vande Bharat ko desh ke sabse technically tough railway routes par chalane ke liye check kiya ja raha hai.
Mysuru Division yeh testing kar rahi hai aur yeh 20-car Vande Bharat specially modified hai. Sabse important hai iska Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) system, jise ghat section mein safe navigation ke liye test kiya ja raha hai. Yeh route itna challenging hai ki yahan 1-in-50 ka gradient hai, 57 tunnels hain, 226 bridges hain aur 108 sharp curves hain. Is wajah se Commissioner of Railway Safety ne yahan speed limit sirf 30 kmph rakhi hai.
Agar yeh tests successfully pass ho gaye, toh Bengaluru aur Mangaluru ke beech service start ho sakti hai. Route toh December 2025 tak fully electrified ho jayega, lekin ghat section ki steep incline aur curves ki wajah se high-speed trains ke liye rigorous safety checks bahut zaroori hain.
RDSO (Research Designs and Standards Organisation) ke officials bhi is testing ko monitor kar rahe hain, jisme braking performance, acceleration, aur stability jaise cheezon ka data collect kiya ja raha hai.
Yeh tests poore railway ecosystem ke liye bahut important hain. Vande Bharat project mein desh ke bahut saare manufacturers involved hain, jo coach shells se lekar braking systems tak banate hain. Agar Vande Bharat ghat regions mein bhi successfully operate kar paati hai, toh Railway Board ko desh ke dusre hilly areas mein bhi aise services launch karne ka rasta mil jayega. Isse specialised rolling stock ki demand badhegi.
Lekin risks bhi hain. Yeh Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road section landslides ke liye prone hai, khaas kar monsoon mein, jisse pehle bhi services disrupt hui hain. Railway supply chain ke investors hamesha naye routes ki launch aur Vande Bharat fleet ki reliability par nazar rakhte hain, kyunki yeh future government tenders ko affect karta hai. Ab sabki nazar RDSO ki final safety clearance report par hai, jo decide karegi ki yeh service commercially feasible hai ya nahi.