JAMMU Dec 13, Buzzbytes: In a significant development, the Railway Board has allocated eight coaches for a Vande Bharat Express, marking a step towards connecting Jammu and Kashmir through the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL). The entire track has been electrified, with final work on some tunnels pending. There is a concerted effort to inaugurate the link, suggesting a potential announcement of the Vande Bharat Express connecting Kashmir to the rest of India before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has expressed that USBRL is slated to be operational in early 2024. The plan includes deploying Vande Bharat trains on this route, along with Vande Metro trains between Jammu and Srinagar, aiming to reduce travel time between the two cities to 3.5 hours, significantly shorter than the current seven-hour journey by road on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway.*
