Ranchi, July 13 : The Ranchi–Patna Vande Bharat Express (Train No. 22350) was delayed by nearly three hours after its engine developed a technical fault near Mesra station on Sunday, disrupting services and causing inconvenience to passengers.
The train departed Ranchi at around 4:15 pm but soon encountered an engine problem near Mesra. According to reports, the loco pilot attempted to rectify the fault. However, the train halted again after the engine’s Main Reservoir (MR) pressure dropped, preventing it from attaining normal speed.
The train was brought to Barkakana with difficulty, reaching the station at around 7:05 pm against its scheduled arrival of 5:25 pm. Railway authorities later attached a relief engine (No. 41122), and the train resumed its journey at about 8:17 pm.
By the time the train reached Koderma, it had accumulated a delay of around three-and-a-half hours. The relief engine hauled the train up to Gaya Junction, after which it continued towards Patna, reaching its destination nearly three hours behind schedule.
The prolonged delay left passengers stranded for hours, with several of them posting complaints on social media platform X and tagging the Railway Ministry over the inconvenience.
When contacted, officials of the Dhanbad and Ranchi railway divisions reportedly did not respond. Ranchi Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) Shreya Singh said she had no information regarding the incident.