In a significant boost to rail connectivity between Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand, Union Minister for Railways, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, along with Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Dr. Mohan Yadav, flagged off two new express trains virtually yesterday. The inaugural run of the Bhopal-Dhanbad Tri-Weekly Express and the Bhopal-Chopan Weekly Express marks a major milestone in enhancing passenger mobility and regional integration.
The newly flagged off trains will provide seamless rail links to several districts across three states. The Bhopal-Dhanbad Tri-Weekly Express (Train Nos. 11631/11632) will commence its service from February 27, 2026, from Bhopal and from March 1, 2026, from Dhanbad. Operating three days a week, it will connect Vidisha, Bina, Sagar, Damoh, Katni, Singrauli, Chopan, Renukut, Garhwa, Daltonganj, Tori, Ranchi Road, Bokaro Thermal, and Chandrapura before reaching Dhanbad .
Simultaneously, the Bhopal-Chopan Weekly Express (Train Nos. 11633/11634) will start operations from March 1, 2026, from Bhopal and from March 2, 2026, from Chopan. This weekly service will provide direct connectivity to Vidisha, Bina, Sagar, Damoh, Katni, Singrauli, and Obra Dam.
Both trains will feature modern LHB (Linke Hofmann Busch) coaches comprising 22 coaches each, including Air Conditioned First Class, AC 2-Tier, AC 3-Tier, Sleeper Class, and General Second Class coaches, ensuring comfortable travel for passengers across all classes [citation:3]. The introduction of these trains is expected to ease travel for pilgrims, traders, and daily commuters, besides promoting tourism and economic activities in the regions they serve.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted that under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the railways has ushered in a new era of development for Madhya Pradesh. He stated that projects worth approximately ₹48,000 crore directly connected to the state have been sanctioned during the current tenure of the government, reflecting an unprecedented focus on modernizing the state’s rail infrastructure.
The Minister outlined key transformative projects underway in the state, including the Indore-Manmad new railway line (approx. ₹18,000 crore), Vadodara-Ratlam third and fourth line (₹8,800 crore), Itarsi-Nagpur fourth line (₹5,400 crore), Gondia-Jabalpur doubling project (approx. ₹5,200 crore), and the Itarsi-Bhopal-Bina fourth line corridor (₹4,300 crore).
In a major development for the state’s industrial landscape, a new 2,052-km East-West Dedicated Freight Corridor from Dankuni (West Bengal) to Surat (Gujarat) has been proposed, traversing through Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra. This corridor will seamlessly connect with the existing Western Dedicated Freight Corridor, providing industries in Madhya Pradesh with high-speed freight connectivity to major western ports including Mundra, Hazira, and the upcoming Vadhvan Port. This strategic infrastructure will significantly enhance the state’s logistics ecosystem, boosting both exports and imports.