Super Vasuki, India’s longest freight train, features six engines and 295 carriages. It transports 27,000 tonnes of coal, which is sufficient to run a 3,000 MW plant for a full day.
In addition to being a well-liked form of transportation in India, trains are essential for moving freight. The Indian Railways network is extensive and varied, ranging from contemporary trains like the Vande Bharat Express to local shuttle services. However, are you aware of India’s longest train and its route?
In India, Super Vasuki is the longest train, not Vande Bharat or Rajdhani either. With an incredible 295 carriages and six engines, this freight train was specifically built to move coal.
A Giant of 3.5 Kilometres
Including its engines, Super Vasuki is around 3.5 kilometers long overall. On August 15, 2022, the 75th anniversary of India’s independence, the Indian Railways inaugurated this enormous freight train as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
Super Vasuki was created specifically to guarantee power plants a consistent supply of coal. It has the capacity to transport 27,000 tons of coal at once, which is sufficient to run a 3,000 MW thermal power plant for a day.
Route And Journey
Super Vasuki travels 267 kilometers on the Korba (Chhattisgarh) to Rajnandgaon (Maharashtra) route. Five regular freight trains were combined to create this super train. It takes roughly eleven hours and twenty minutes to finish the trip.
Because of its extreme length, Super Vasuki takes over four minutes to cross a train station. It would take about an hour for someone to walk from one end of the train to the other and start counting the coaches. It is an amazing engineering achievement with a carrying capacity three times that of a typical freight train.
The Meaning Behind the Name
The Hindu mythology is the source of the name Vasuki. Vasuki is a devout devotee of Lord Shiva and a Nagaraj, or serpent king. In the Samudra Manthan (ocean churning), he served as a rope. The name is a representation of the strength, patience, and vastness that characterize this enormous train.
