Bengaluru–Mangaluru Vande Bharat nears launch; ghat section trial runs begin June 1

Bengaluru–Mangaluru Vande Bharat nears launch; ghat section trial runs begin June 1

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, May 30, 2026: The much-awaited Bengaluru–Mangaluru Vande Bharat Express is a step closer to becoming a reality, bringing good news to passengers in Coastal Karnataka. The final technical hurdle for the launch of the premium train service is expected to be cleared with the commencement of trial runs on the newly electrified Sakleshpur–Subrahmanya Road ghat section of the Hassan–Mangaluru railway line.

A high-level team from the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO), the quality and standards arm of the Ministry of Railways, is set to begin advanced trial runs on the ghat section from June 1. Upon successful completion of these tests and submission of its approval report to the Railway Ministry, operations of the Bengaluru–Mangaluru Vande Bharat Express are expected to commence.

During his visit to Mangaluru on May 23, Minister of State for Railways V. Somanna had announced that the Bengaluru–Mangaluru Vande Bharat Express would be introduced in June. Railway officials are now awaiting the outcome of the RDSO trials and the subsequent clearance from the ministry.

According to Mudit Mittal, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) of the Mysuru Division of South Western Railway, the RDSO team will begin test operations from June 1. Various types of train sets, including passenger and freight rakes with different load conditions, will be operated on the route to assess the performance and safety of the electrified section. The testing process is expected to take about a week, and several rakes have already been kept ready for the purpose.

A trial run involving an empty passenger rake hauled by an electric locomotive was successfully conducted on the newly electrified ghat section recently.

The 55-km Sakleshpur–Subrahmanya Road stretch on the Hassan–Mangaluru line is considered one of the most technically challenging railway sections in India. The route has a steep gradient of 1 in 50, meaning the track rises one metre for every 50 metres of distance. It is also highly prone to landslides and features 57 tunnels, 258 bridges and 108 sharp curves, making electrification a complex engineering task.

The electrification contract covering nearly 400 km of railway lines, including the 300-km Mysuru–Hassan–Mangaluru section, the 47-km Hassan–Arsikere route and the 45-km Kadur–Chikkamagaluru line, was awarded to RITES in August 2021.

While the project was initially estimated at ₹461.23 crore, the Railway Ministry revised the cost to ₹729.28 crore in March 2026. Of this, ₹93.55 crore was spent exclusively on electrifying the Sakleshpur–Subrahmanya Road ghat section between December 2023 and December 2025. The overhead electrification infrastructure on the route has been designed to support train speeds of up to 120 kmph.