Non-veg meals on Kamakhya-Howrah Vande Bharat sleeper from next week: Railways

Kolkata, Jan 27: Non-vegetarian food options will soon be available in the menu of India's first Vande Bharat sleeper train between Howrah and Kamakhya, an Eastern Railway (ER) official said on Tuesday.

"Non-vegetarian food options are likely to be available in the menu of Vande Bharat sleeper train within about a week," the ER official told the press.

A section of passengers has raised the issue of only vegetarian food being served in the newly-introduced six-day-a-week overnight train.

The Railways have promised that the food served to passengers on board the Vande Bharat sleeper train will have the flavour of Assamese cuisine for the train departing from Kamakhya and the local cuisine of West Bengal for the train departing from Howrah.

Union Minister of State for Education, Sukanta Majumdar, has said that Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has assured him that non-vegetarian food options will also be available in the Vande Bharat sleeper train.

Majumdar said on Monday that Vaishnaw has told him that the food menu for the train has been introduced with vegetarian fare, but non-vegetarian fare will also be made available.

"People of both West Bengal and Assam are mostly non-vegetarian, so such delicacies will be offered in the Vande Bharat sleeper train," he said, claiming that the Trinamool Congress was trying to make an issue of the matter

The train, which was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 17, commenced its regular commercial run from Kamakhya station in Guwahati on January 22 and from Howrah the next day.

The local cuisines of both West Bengal and Assam have a heavy imprint of non-vegetarian dishes, including both fish and meat preferences.

Non-vegetarian food options are available to passengers in other premium trains such as Rajdhani Express, Shatabdi Express and Vande Bharat day trains.

So far, the premium overnight service offers an array of vegetarian dishes including basanti pulao, cholar and moong dal, chanar and dhokar preparations, Assamese joha rice, mati mohor and masoor dali, along with seasonal vegetable bhajis.

According to officials, the menu has been designed specifically for overnight travel, with an emphasis on mild spice profiles, seasonal ingredients and traditional cooking methods, while retaining the authenticity of regional flavours.

PTI