India, Dec. 17 -- Over a month after Sangrur AAP MP Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer announced a protest at the Barnala railway station if the Ferozepur-Delhi Vande Bharat Express did not include a halt there by December 1, the Centre on Wednesday officially approved the stoppage.

Union minister of state for railways Ravneet Singh Bittu confirmed that the demand for the stoppage had been long-standing and acknowledged the collective efforts of political representatives from the region. He said that Meet Hayer along with MP Rajinder Gupta and former MLA Kewal Singh Dhillon had sought the halt at Barnala.

Bittu said: "I had been urged by party members to prioritise this issue for commuters of Punjab, and to visit the state only after the stop is ...