The Indian Railways have placed an order for 84,000 wagons, the highest in the national transporter’s history. This will help boost the railways’ freight transportation share to 45 per cent by 2030 from the current 27 per cent, Union minister Darshana Jardosh said. Various schemes for the purchase of special types of wagons have also been introduced, she added.
During an ASSOCHAM panel discussion, Jardosh said that the railways are expected to load over 1,500 million tonnes of goods this year, PTI reported. This will be its highest-ever figure.
According to Jardosh, railways have been mainly used to carry bulk goods, but in the past few years, it has also started to transport various types of consumer goods. These goods can be easily transported by containers.
Jardosh further informed that a target has been set to increase the share of railways by 45 per cent. He mentioned Indian Railways freight services need more track availability, wagon, rake, terminal and various freight schemes.
arsdosh mentioned that between 2006 and 2014 the national transporter engaged in projects of about 4.16 kilometres in a day, while in between 2014 and 2022, the projects increased to 7 kilometres per day. In the current year, she said, it has further increased to 12 km per day.
The Minister of State for Railways with the new projects every nook and corner of the country will be connected. From the year 2006 to 2014, the railways doubled 4,557 km of track, while from 2014 till now, 13,080 km of track doubling has been done, she said. Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL) is 61 per cent commissioned.
About the electrification of freight trains, she said, 85 per cent is complete and hopes that 00 per cent electrification will be achieved by the end of the current financial year.
She also announced the launch of a new product, which will allow customers to receive door-to-door services by collaborating with India Post. Both the railways and the postal service will provide middle-mile and first-mile services.
Jardosh further hoped that building more terminals under the Gati Shakti policy, investing in special types of wagons and sending goods by rail as aggregators, especially consumer goods will further improve the freight services of India Railways.