Second Vande Bharat sleeper starts on Varanasi-New Delhi route
The overnight train takes about nine hours via Prayagraj and Kanpur. India's first sleeper version has run between Howrah and Guwahati since January.
India's second Vande Bharat sleeper train began service on Saturday, October 31, linking Varanasi and New Delhi overnight. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw flagged it off from Varanasi, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the service in a post on X, Bombay Samachar reported. It is the first sleeper version of the Vande Bharat to serve Uttar Pradesh.
Train 27421 leaves Varanasi at 8:50 pm and reaches New Delhi at 5:55 am. The return service, 27422, leaves New Delhi at 9:40 pm and arrives in Varanasi at 6:45 am, a journey of about nine hours each way. It stops at Prayagraj and Kanpur Central and runs six days a week.
The train has 16 coaches in AC first class, AC two-tier and AC three-tier, with room for 823 passengers. Fares were not included in the launch reports, so travellers should check IRCTC.
The first Vande Bharat sleeper began running between Howrah and Guwahati in January 2026.
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