The Indian Railways is set to revolutionise freight transportation with the introduction of Vande Bharat-based cargo trains. The prototype of this train is being manufactured by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF). Officials told Financial Express Digital that the ICF in Chennai will roll out the first prototype for testing and trials this week. It will be thoroughly tested by the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO) before its commissioning. 

Rigorous testing before rollout: RDSO to evaluate the prototype 

Before entering service, the prototype will undergo an extensive validation process by the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO). The testing phase will include oscillation trials, emergency braking distance (EBD) assessments, and performance evaluations under full-load conditions. These trials are aimed at ensuring safety, stability, and efficiency benchmarks are met before commissioning.


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Evolution of a modern trainset: The Vande Bharat journey 

This development comes at a time when Vande Bharat trains have already established a strong presence across India’s passenger rail network. As of December 2025, 164 Vande Bharat trains are operational nationwide, significantly enhancing connectivity across key corridors and offering faster, safer, and more reliable travel. 

The first ever Vande Bharat Express was launched on 15 February 2019 on the New Delhi – Kanpur –Prayagraj–Varanasi route. The train was designed to address the growing demand for reduced travel time and improved onboard comfort on inter-city routes. To further upgrade, Indian Railways launched the second version of Vande Bharat Express (Vande Bharat 2.0). Vande Bharat 2.0 was introduced in September 2022, bringing improvements in weight reduction, acceleration, and energy efficiency. 

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Then finally Indian Railways launched the sleeper version of Vande Bharat trainset (Vande Bharat 3.0) The Vande Bharat 3.0 version further enhances performance with faster acceleration and modern passenger amenities such as onboard Wi-Fi and charging ports.

Now finally the introduction of cargo variants of Vande Bharat signals Indian Railways’ intent to leverage this proven technology for logistics, potentially transforming freight movement with speed and efficiency.