The Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw today announced that the country’s first bullet train will run through the state of Bihar, connecting Varanasi to Siliguri via Patna in Bihar.
Ashwini Vaishnaw called it a game-changer for Bihar and highlighted its potential to strengthen connectivity, growth, and regional development.
#WATCH | Delhi: Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vishnaw says, “The first bullet train is going to run in Bihar. The train will run from Varanasi to Siliguri via Patna. This will be a game-changer for Bihar…” pic.twitter.com/DI5aHmNWdl
— ANI (@ANI) February 2, 2026
In the briefing today, the Union Railways Minister also highlighted that two new bullet train corridors will be started in Tamil Nadu as well. He mentioned that Tamil Nadu has received a record railway budget of Rs 7,611 crore. This is nine times higher than the allocation given during the Congress and UPA governments.
Railway Budget 2026-27
In the Union Budget 2026-27, a record capital expenditure of ₹2,93,030 crore has been planned for Indian Railways. This is the highest-ever capex as well as allocation for Indian Railways.
As part of its long-term vision, the Government has announced the development of seven high-speed rail corridors between cities as ‘growth connectors’ to promote environmentally sustainable passenger transport systems. These corridors include Mumbai–Pune, Pune–Hyderabad, Hyderabad–Bengaluru, Hyderabad–Chennai, Chennai–Bengaluru, Delhi–Varanasi and Varanasi–Siliguri. The proposed corridors are expected to significantly reduce inter-city travel time and facilitate seamless, multimodal movement of passengers.
#ViksitBharatBudget:
7 High-Speed Rail Corridors as growth connectors between cities ⬇️Mumbai to Pune
Pune to Hyderabad
Hyderabad to Bengaluru
Hyderabad to Chennai
Chennai to Bengaluru
Delhi to Varanasi
Varanasi to Siliguri pic.twitter.com/XY5PEVge1y— Ashwini Vaishnaw (@AshwiniVaishnaw) February 1, 2026