Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw officially flagged off the Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper Express on October 31, 2026. Shrini Srivastava assists in train operations alongside the loco pilot, while Jyoti Kumari serves as the train's guard. The new sleeper service provides an overnight travel option connecting Varanasi and the national capital. Unlike the standard chair-car rakes, this train features sleeping berths and scheduled stops at Prayagraj, Kanpur Central, Aligarh, and Ghaziabad.
Key points
Shrini Srivastava holds an electronics engineering degree and joined Indian Railways in t…: Shrini Srivastava holds an electronics engineering degree and joined Indian Railways in the Varanasi division in April 2017.
Srivastava became the first female assistant loco pilot in the North Eastern Railway zone…: Srivastava became the first female assistant loco pilot in the North Eastern Railway zone to operate the Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat.
The overnight sleeper service connects Varanasi and New Delhi with scheduled intermediate…: The overnight sleeper service connects Varanasi and New Delhi with scheduled intermediate stops at Prayagraj, Kanpur Central, Aligarh, and Ghaziabad.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
The sleeper train was flagged off from Varanasi on October 31, 2026, in the presence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. According to reports, its 13-member operating crew includes seven women. Srivastava is among the assistant loco pilots assigned to the service, while Jyoti Kumari has been appointed as the guard.
Who is Shrini Srivastava, and when did she join Indian Railways?
Srivastava belongs to Ghazipur district in eastern Uttar Pradesh. She completed her electronics engineering before joining Indian Railways as an assistant loco pilot in April 2017. She was posted in the Varanasi railway division.According to a 2024 report by Dainik Jagran, she is the youngest of three sisters. Her father, Pankaj Srivastava, retired from the Public Works Department, while her mother, Maya Srivastava, is a homemaker.
Her decision to enter the Railways came after completing her engineering education. She joined a technical railway role that involves assisting in train operations and working alongside the loco pilot. Her initial posting in the Varanasi division also placed her in the railway network from…
Lead American negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will guide discussions in the United Arab Emirates aimed at achieving a diplomatic breakthrough before winter sets in. The initiative follows direct engagement between Witkoff and Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg amid stepped-up White House pressure on Kyiv to negotiate an end to the fighting. Working-level meetings in Brussels with key European allies and NATO will lay the groundwork for proposed security guarantees and reconstruction aid.
West Bengal Minister Dilip Ghosh claimed the opposition's protest against the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls stems from the removal of fraudulent voters. He accused former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of leaning on Congress leadership due to her diminishing political influence across the state. In response, ruling party workers plan statewide counter-rallies while cabinet ministers oversee local district security during major upcoming religious festivals.
Following a deadly maritime strike off the coast of Limah, New Delhi is actively coordinating with local officials to repatriate the surviving crew members and the deceased seafarer's remains. The foreign ministry warned that persistent strikes on commercial shipping severely undermine international law and global waterways. Consequently, diplomatic envoys are calling for an immediate de-escalation of regional hostilities through conclusive negotiations.