Fact Check: New name of Train 18 is not Vande Mataram Express
Train 18 has been renamed 'Vande Bharat Express' and not 'Vande Mataram Express'.
Listen to Story
India Today Fact Check
Train 18 has been renamed 'Vande Bharat Express' and not 'Vande Mataram Express'.
A Facebook post on the recent renaming of Train 18 -- the Indian Railways' fastest engineless train -- is doing the rounds on social media. According to the claim, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the train is called "Vande Mataram Express" so that the "traitors who were reluctant to utter these words are now forced to do so".
The claim was made by a Facebook page called 'Narendra Modi Whatsapp Group' which has more than 15 lakh followers.
The archived version of the post can be seen here.
India Today Fact Check found this claim to be false. Train 18 has been renamed as "Vande Bharat Express" and not "Vande Mataram Express".
The post has been widely circulated on Facebook as well as Twitter.
The viral post carried photos of Train 18 along with a cut-out of PM Modi. The message with the photo said, "Waah re Modi! Gaddaar Vande Mataram nahi bol rahe the, Modi ne Train 18 ka naam hi Vande Mataram Express rakh diya, ab to inke baap ko bhi bolna padega [Excellent Modi! Traitors didn't want to say Vande Mataram, Modi has renamed Train 18 as Vande Mataram Express, now they'll be forced to say it.]"
India Today Fact Check found that the news related to the renaming of Train 18 to Vande Bharat Express was covered by prominent media organisations, including Business Today.
Acknowledging its made-in-India status, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on January 27 had announced that Train 18 will be known as Vande Bharat Express. Manufactured at Chennai's Integral Coach Factory (ICF), it is regarded as a successor to Shatabdi Express. The fully air-conditioned train is set to run between Delhi and Varanasi at a maximum speed of 160kmph.
Correction: One of our readers pointed out that the Train 18 coaches have been manufactured at Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai and not at Rae Bareli's Modern Coach Factory. We have corrected it in the article.
Please share it on our at 73 7000 7000
You can also send us an email at factcheck@intoday.com