The government has invited tenders for 200 fourth-generation Vande Bharat Trains which will be the first-of-their-kind in India as they will be light-weight aluminium bodied and can run at a maximum speeds of 200 km/hour.

Tenders invited by the government this month in two batches of 100 trains each. The delivery deadline is fixed at minimum 30 trains to be delivered in the first year, 40 in the second year and 50 trains from the third year onwards. These recent tenders for sleeper trains follow tenders for 200 third-generation Vande Bharat trains floated in April and whose deadline was recently extended till October. For the most recent tenders, companies have been given time till November 2022 to submit their bids.

These tenders kick-start the announcement made by the government earlier this year to roll out 400 Vande Bharat trains by the end of 2024-25. While companies were given the choice between either steel or aluminium coaches in the tenders for 200 trains issued in April, the recent tenders specify the 200 other trains have to be light-weight aluminium bodied as well as energy-efficient.