Indian Railways is set to introduce a Vande Bharat Sleeper Express between Varanasi and New Delhi, offering an overnight connection between the two cities. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath are expected to flag off the service from Varanasi.

The service is expected to operate six days a week. Train 27421 will leave Varanasi at 8:50 pm and arrive in Delhi at 5:55 am the following day, while train 27422 will depart New Delhi at 9:40 pm and reach Varanasi at 6:45 am.

The semi-high-speed train will cover 760 km via Kanpur Central in 9 hours and 30 minutes. It will have 16 coaches, with accommodation across First AC, Second AC and Third AC classes. Indian Railways has not yet issued the commercial fare circular, although fares are likely to be higher than those of other trains on the route because of the additional amenities.

Two MEMU services are also scheduled to begin on the same day. One will connect Varanasi with Prayagraj Rambagh, while the other will operate between Varanasi City and Raja Talab. The new sleeper service is being introduced during the festive period, ahead of Diwali and Chhath, when demand for overnight intercity travel generally increases.

Vande Bharat services were launched on the New Delhi-Varanasi route in February 2019. The network has since carried more than 91 mn passengers across 100,000 trips. In FY 2024-25, approximately 39.8 mn passengers used the services, compared with 29.7 mn in the previous year, representing growth of nearly 34 per cent. The Kamakhya-Howrah sleeper service carried 121,000 passengers during its first 119 trips and recorded occupancy exceeding 100 per cent.