Vande Bharat trains face significant delays after track damage in Kathua

Rail services in Jammu and Kashmir have been severely affected after a freight train engine derailed in Kathua district earlier this week due to heavy rainfall. The incident has disrupted operations, causing significant delays—particularly for the Vande Bharat trains running between New Delhi and Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra.

According to the Indian Railways’ train tracking portal, the New Delhi–Katra Vande Bharat Express (Train No. 22439), which departs from New Delhi at 6 am, arrived at its destination on Saturday over three hours late. Scheduled to reach Katra by 2:00 pm, the train eventually arrived at 5:18 pm. Similar delays were reported on Friday as well.

Another Vande Bharat train (Train No. 22477), which usually departs New Delhi in the afternoon, was rescheduled on Saturday to leave at 7 pm instead of its usual 3 pm departure time. This train also faced delays on Friday.

The disruption has similarly affected return services. On Saturday morning, the Katra–New Delhi Vande Bharat Express (Train No. 22478), scheduled to depart at 5:45 am, left nearly four hours late. The afternoon service (Train No. 22440) was delayed by more than two hours. On Friday, the same train arrived in Delhi approximately four hours behind schedule.

The persistent delays have left passengers frustrated. “The train that was supposed to start at 7:10 am from Jammu arrived four hours late from Katra,” said a resident of Jammu who was travelling to Delhi on Saturday. “Vande Bharat trains were launched to provide comfort and punctuality, but such delays defeat their purpose. A four-hour delay is unacceptable.”

The derailment occurred in the Lakhanpur area of Kathua district, where torrential rains damaged a section of the railway track, leading to the engine’s derailment. The Railway Department swiftly deployed heavy machinery to the site, and restoration work continued into Thursday evening.

Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) of Northern Railway’s Jammu Division, Vivek Kumar, confirmed to The Tribune that the delays were due to the derailment. “Train services will return to normal very soon,” he assured.