Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday, 7 July 2026 welcomed the launch of a new Amrit Bharat Express service connecting Brahmapur in southern Odisha to Udhna in Gujarat, calling it a fresh milestone in the state's rail connectivity under the 'double engine' government model.

Context

Posting in Odia on X, CM Majhi said the daily service would bring 'adhika suvidha, suraksha o aaramdayaka yatrar anubhava' — 'greater convenience, safety and a comfortable travel experience' — to passengers. He added that the train would connect five states, including Odisha, and create new opportunities for students, traders and ordinary commuters by saving both time and money.

The Chief Minister also noted that the service would strengthen commercial, social and cultural ties between eastern, central and western India. He tagged the Railway Ministry, East Coast Railway, the Prime Minister's Office and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in his post, signalling coordinated Centre-state messaging around the launch.

Policy Backdrop

The Amrit Bharat Express scheme was announced in the Union Budget 2023-24 to introduce a new generation of long-distance trains with modern coaches, improved passenger amenities and enhanced safety features. The trains are designed to serve extended corridors at affordable fares, targeting the large segment of non-air-conditioned travellers.

The post also carries the hashtag #Kavach, referencing the government's automatic train protection system that has been rolled out on high-density corridors as part of a broader rail safety upgrade programme accelerated since 2020. The East Coast Railway, headquartered in Bhubaneswar, oversees rail operations across Odisha and adjacent zones and is the nodal zonal railway for this corridor.

The 'double engine' framing — coordinated governance between a BJP-led Centre and a BJP state government — has been a consistent political and policy narrative that CM Majhi has deployed since taking charge as Odisha's first BJP Chief Minister in June 2024. Infrastructure announcements are a primary vehicle for this messaging.

Stakeholders and Impact

Brahmapur, also known as Berhampur, is a major commercial and educational centre in southern Odisha with significant student and trader populations who regularly travel to western India for work and study. A direct daily express service to Udhna — a key junction in Surat district, Gujarat — addresses a longstanding demand from this community for faster, more affordable connectivity.

The route is expected to benefit migrant workers, textile traders and students travelling between Odisha and the industrial belt of southern Gujarat. By linking five states along the eastern, central and western corridor, the service also carries broader regional economic significance beyond Odisha alone.

What's Next

The broader Amrit Bharat Express programme envisions a phased rollout of upgraded services across multiple long-distance corridors, with further route additions anticipated in the coming months. The parallel deployment of the Kavach automatic protection system on additional high-density tracks will be closely watched as a measure of the Centre's rail safety commitments.

For Odisha, the Brahmapur-Udhna service marks one more link in a growing web of inter-regional connections that the state government is positioning as evidence of accelerated infrastructure delivery under the current political alignment between Bhubaneswar and New Delhi.