The spectacular aerial video of a Vande Bharat slicing through the misty Western Ghats is more than a monsoon postcard. Behind those fleeting seconds of orange-and-white against a sea of green lies one of Indian Railways’ most demanding stretches — 55 km of tunnels, bridges, sharp curves, steep gradients, landslides and years of engineering work.There are few sights quite like a train disappearing into a wall of mist and emerging seconds later against a backdrop of lush green mountains.That is exactly what a new aerial video of the Vande Bharat Express capture in Karnataka.The orange train snakes through the rain-soaked Western Ghats, vanishing into tunnels before reappearing amid dense forests, steep slopes and clouds of monsoon mist. Seen from above, the train almost resembles an orange snake crawling through an endless carpet of green.The footage, captured by creator @hemisphere.fpv during a recent trial run on the Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road ghat section, has struck a chord online, clocking more than 15 million views on Instagram. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw later shared the visuals on X.For passengers, it is an extraordinary glimpse of what could become one of India’s most scenic Vande Bharat journeys.But for the railways, those few minutes of breathtaking footage represent something far more complicated.Because behind the orange snake is a railway line that has long been regarded as one of the most difficult to operate — and even harder to electrify.
Vande Bharat
A railway line built into the mountains
The Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road section, commonly known as the Shiradi Ghat section, is only about 55 km long.Yet distance tells little of the difficulty involved.The line cuts through some of the most challenging terrain in the Western Ghats, with steep gradients, sharp curves, tunnels, bridges and slopes vulnerable to landslides and rockfalls.At one point, the railway encounters a gradient of 1 in 50 — meaning the track rises or falls by one metre for every 50 metres travelled.There are dozens of tunnels and more than a hundred sharp curves. The route is also largely inaccessible by road, making even routine engineering work a logistical exercise.When electrification work was under way, railway officials had to transport material by train because there was no road approaching large portions of the track.During the monsoon, the challenge becomes even greater.Heavy rain can trigger landslides, wash away soil and send rocks tumbling onto the track. Every engineering intervention therefore has to account not just for trains and electricity, but also for the mountain itself.
The electrification took nearly two years
The electrification of this difficult section began in December 2023.It was finally completed in December 2025, after an expenditure of around Rs 93.5 crore.The project involved installing overhead electrical equipment across the entire 55-km stretch and constructing five switching stations.The work inside the tunnels was particularly demanding.The section has 57 tunnels, requiring hundreds of brackets for the overhead equipment. Geological studies were carried out on both lined and unlined portions of the tunnels, while pull-out tests were conducted at bracket locations to ensure that the anchoring and grouting would withstand the demands of the terrain.The overhead equipment itself was designed for speeds of up to 120 kmph, although the actual operational speed through the ghat remains dramatically lower because of the terrain.
Misty Western Ghats
The electrification also required specialised engineering because the route has steep inclines extending up to around 830 metres.Then came the weather.Heavy monsoon rain, landslides, soil erosion and rockfalls repeatedly complicated the work. Railway authorities had to work within stringent safety restrictions imposed by the Commissioner of Railway Safety while keeping train operations safe.The successful electric locomotive trial in December 2025 finally marked the completion of electrification.The mountain railway was now ready for electric traction.But Vande Bharat was still not ready to follow.
When electrification did not mean Vande Bharat
This was where another problem emerged.The railway board had sanctioned electric traction on the Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya Road section for goods and passenger trains.But the Vande Bharat Express was different.Unlike conventional trains hauled by locomotives, Vande Bharat is a self-propelled trainset, with traction equipment distributed across the rake.The ghat section’s steep gradients created a specific safety requirement: Trains operating there need an automatic emergency braking system.The system is designed to intervene if a train exceeds the prescribed speed and, crucially, provides an additional layer of protection on a route where gravity itself becomes an operational factor.The maximum permitted speed on the ghat section is 30 kmph.The conventional Vande Bharat rakes being considered for the route, however, were not equipped with the required AEB system.That meant electrification had solved one problem while creating another question:Could Vande Bharat actually be cleared to run here?
The locomotive workaround
For a time, one possible solution was to use additional locomotives.The idea was straightforward: If the self-propelled Vande Bharat could not independently meet the safety requirements of the ghat section, locomotives could be attached to help it negotiate the difficult stretch.Railway officials described this as a practical operational solution, similar to arrangements used when trains face traction or locomotive failures.But the idea was far from ideal.Rail enthusiasts pointed out that adding and removing locomotives would undermine one of the central advantages of Vande Bharat — its self-propelled design.It would also introduce additional operational procedures and potentially increase the time required to negotiate the section.The railways therefore moved towards a more permanent solution: Retrofit the Vande Bharat rake itself with an automatic emergency braking system.That decision became the key to unlocking the route.
The orange train finally enters the ghats
By August, the wait had reached the trial stage.Preparatory work began before the actual testing, with railway officials stressing that the trials would be conducted cautiously because the section had recently seen monsoon-related disruptions and restoration work.The train was to run at low speeds, with additional safety precautions and the involvement of multiple departments, including mechanical, electrical, operations and security teams.The Research Designs and Standards Organisation was involved in assessing the train’s performance.The AEB system was among the most important features being evaluated.The trial was not simply about seeing whether a Vande Bharat could physically travel from one station to another.Railway officials had to examine everything from train operations and stoppages to crew arrangements, origination and termination points and the eventual timetable.In other words, before passengers could sit in those comfortable seats and watch the Western Ghats roll past their windows, the railway had to first prove that the train could safely negotiate every difficult kilometre of the route.
From 20 kmph to a potential 30 kmph
The monsoon added another layer of caution.Following a landslide, the ghat section had been subjected to a temporary speed restriction of 20 kmph.The designated speed for the section is 30 kmph, but railway officials said this would be restored only after the track was certified fit.That is a crucial distinction in a mountain railway.On a straight, level stretch, a few kilometres per hour may seem insignificant.Here, they can determine braking distances, train stability and operational safety.The AEB system becomes particularly important because a train on a steep gradient can continue to move even after the driver has applied the brakes.The system’s route-specific parameters are designed to automatically intervene when required.That technology is now being tested against the reality of one of Karnataka’s most unforgiving railway landscapes.
The railway line that moves at the pace of the mountains
The story of this route is also a reminder that Vande Bharat’s arrival does not automatically mean high-speed travel.The train may look futuristic.The route is anything but.The maximum speed through the ghat section remains only 30 kmph.The line is single-track, and its geography dictates how trains are allowed to move.Unlike conventional block sections, parts of the ghat have two blocks combined into one because of the terrain’s complexity. A train must clear the entire stretch before another can enter.Even maintenance work has to be carefully choreographed.During the electrification project, railway officials scheduled a daily four-hour block. Material trains would move from either end, taking roughly 1.5 hours to travel through the section and another 1.5 hours to return, leaving about an hour for unloading.It was a railway operation dictated by the clock, the terrain and the weather.
Why Bengaluru-Mangaluru passengers are watching closely
For years, the prospect of a Vande Bharat between Bengaluru and Mangaluru has generated considerable public interest.Mangaluru is one of Karnataka’s most important coastal cities, while the railway line connects the coast with the state’s interior and the Bengaluru region.The route is also significant for Hassan and Sakleshpur, whose residents have repeatedly sought faster rail connectivity.When the Vande Bharat trial train arrived at Sakleshpur, local residents and public representatives turned up to welcome it.For many, the significance was not simply that a new train had arrived at the station.It was that a long-discussed possibility was beginning to look tangible.A daily Vande Bharat service would potentially offer a faster and more comfortable alternative for passengers travelling between Bengaluru and the coast, while giving tourists another way to experience the Western Ghats.As of now, a single-direction run will take around 8.5 hours, during which the train will halt at all its likely stops on the route, such as Hassan, Sakleshpur, and Subrahmanya Road, following a fixed timetable.For rail enthusiasts, the attraction is even more obvious.The existing route is already famous for its scenery. A Vande Bharat would allow many more passengers to experience the tunnels, bridges, forests and mountain vistas without requiring a special tourist service.
And then there is the coast
The ambition could eventually extend beyond Mangaluru.Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has previously indicated that the wider vision is to connect coastal Karnataka with Bengaluru and potentially extend services towards Madgaon in Goa.But any extension beyond Mangaluru will depend on the Railway Board.For now, the immediate goal is simpler: establish a safe Vande Bharat operation between Bengaluru and Mangaluru.Only after the trials, reports and mandatory safety clearances will commercial operations become possible.
More than a train ride
That is why the aerial video is so compelling.For those watching it online, the image is almost cinematic — an orange-and-white train gliding through mist, entering a black tunnel and emerging into an impossibly green landscape.But the real story lies beneath that image.It is in the 55-km stretch where there is barely a road to the railway line.It is in the 57 tunnels carved through the mountains.It is in the 226 bridges and the 108 sharp curves.It is in the 1-in-50 gradient.It is in the landslides and rockfalls that return with the monsoon.It is in the years spent electrifying a railway that engineers could reach only by rail.And it is in the painstaking effort to make a modern self-propelled train compatible with a railway line designed by the geography of the Western Ghats.The Vande Bharat seen in the viral footage may look like it is effortlessly gliding through the mist.It isn’t.Every second of that journey represents years of engineering, safety assessments and operational planning.And perhaps that is what makes the sight of the orange snake disappearing into the mountains all the more remarkable.
