I think Ichi is right. Trains are not accessible to all parts of the country but the roads and buses are. But the catch is that people travel much longer distance by trains than by bus. We should talk about person-kms than just no. of people. Person-km figure can be higher for trains.

exactly

I read it in a magazine, so dont have the results on the net.

The vast majority of Indian people travel small distances (200-300km) during the year.

plus there are other few facts to support this considering that 90% of public transport in Indian cities is bus transport.

read through

http://policy.rutgers.edu/faculty/pucher/FINALarticleTransportPolicy.pdf


On top of which there is the private bus sector as well unlike the case with railways.

So i still maintain, India for now is a bus country for medium and short distances which the vast majority of Indians use. The % of Indians travelling long term distances is also very low.

This can also be proven by the fact that 20 million people use Indian railway services every day, out of which about 7 million come from rider ship from mumbai suburban railway and substantial chuck of the rest is made by systems like Chennai suberbun and Kolkata suburban. etc etc

Indian Railways expansion of network during 1950-51 to 2007-08



Upgradation and expansion of the Indian Railways network is a continuous process. During the period 1950-51 to 2007-08, while the route kilometres of Indian Railways have grown from 53,596 kilometres to 63,273 kilometres at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate of around 0.29%, the Running Track Kilometres grew from 59,315 kilometres to 85,158 kilometres at a CAGR of 0.64% and the electrified route grew from 388 kilometres to 18,274 kilometres at a CAGR of 6.99%.

The freight rates increased from 3.16 paise to 89.04 paise during the above period at a CAGR of 6.03%.

On an average 169.77 kilometres of new line track was added from 1950-51 to 2007-08. At present, 122 new line projects are in progress and on completion these would add around 12,000 kilometres to the existing network. Railways have decided to step up the rate of laying of new lines. The Vision 2020 document of the Railways envisages laying of 25,000 kilometres of new line by the year 2020. Accordingly, an enhanced target of laying 1000 kilometers of new lines has been indicated in the Budget 2010-11.

Source:- http://www.steelguru.com/news/index/MTQxMzk5/Indian_Railways_expansion_of_network_during_1950-51_to_2007-08.html

New Delhi: Indian Railways has proposed four public-private partnership (PPP) models — cost-sharing freight rebate, full contribution, SPV, and private line — for network expansion.


A meeting is scheduled for April 17 between rail ministry officials and representatives of private sector companies on the issue.
Termed as Railways Infrastructure Initiative for Industry (R3i), the scheme to develop the rail lines is focused on incentivising the private sector to work in tandem with Railways and provide connectivity to the areas that are not covered.
As per the cost-sharing freight rebate model, the contribution of the applicant should not be less than 50%.

“The applicant will recover its investment through a rebate of 10-12% on incremental traffic. This will be valid till the advance contribution made by it is recovered or for a period of 10 years, whichever being earlier. This is, however, subject to the condition that 30% of the advance should be recovered within the first five years after the commissioning of the line,” said the draft policy document on R3i.

In the full contribution apportioned earning model, the applicant will make 100% contribution to the project cost. The applicant will construct and maintain the line for a period of 25 years.

“Railways would levy a licence of 2% from the applicant’s share of earnings net of operations and maintenance (O&M) costs for the first 10 years from the date of commissioning and 4% thereafter till the completion of 25 years,” it said. At the end of the 25 year period, the revenue would accrue to the Railways. In the SPV model, the Railways’ share in the special purpose vehicle will be 26%. “SPV shall be granted a concession, a share in the revenues generated on the project line, in lieu of construction, operation and maintenance of the line,” it said.Private line model would apply when a private line is built by the applicant on privately acquired land and connectivity is sought to the Railways’ network. The applicant will construct and maintain the line for a period of 30 years and pay licence fee of 2% to 4% to the Railways through the period.

Source:http://www.dnaindia.com/money/report_railways-moots-4-models-for-private-play-in-expansion_1371513

Rebel-hit rail zone threatens to cancel trains

South Eastern Railway has told the state government that it will “slow down or selectively cancel trains” if security of railway tracks and bridges in Maoist-hit areas of Bengal was not stepped up.

A.P. Mishra, the rail zone’s general manager, has written to chief secretary Asok Mohan Chakrabarti, requesting for more security.

“The letter has been addressed to the chief secretaries of Bengal, Jharkhand and Orissa, where services have been hit by Maoist violence. The rebels are also damaging railway property,” a railway official said today.

Mishra said in the letter that the security of railway tracks and bridges are state subjects. “The general manager has requested the state governments to alert all the police stations in Maoist-affected areas and arrange for extra vigilance to prevent sabotage,” the official added.

A spurt in Maoist violence has hit train services on South Eastern Railway routes.

Last month, a blast triggered by the Maoists damaged a railway line in West Midnapore and prompted the suspension of service on the Adra-Midnapore section for about 10 hours.

Source: The Telegraph

Railway Route Planner (http://www.bharatbyrail.com)

How trains get their unique numbers

Have you ever wondered why the Mumbai-Goa Konkankanya is numbered 0111, the Mumbai Central-Ahmedabad Shatabdi Express 2009 or the CST-Varanasi Mahanagari Express 1093? Were these ‘numeric codes’ based on the trains’ number-wise entry into the Indian Railways’ stable or just a random combination of numbers? Railway officials say it’s neither.
The four-digit combination identifying every long distance mail or express chugging in and out of stations across the country is an address which links the engine and coaches to the zonal headquarters and then to their division. For example, all Konkan Railway trains start with zero. Any train which is either from Central Railway or the West Central Railway all use 1 as the first-digit while the Eastern and East Central Railway zones goes with 3 (see box).
The second digit would be reserved for the division. Number 2 is reserved for a Shatabdi or a Janshatabdi; the second digit here would then indicate which zone the train belongs to. Railway officials said the coding ends there, as the last two digits do not follow any set rules or norms. However, the fourth digit would be odd or even depending on how the railway division numbers its Up and Down trains. For example, CR numbers its Up trains even and Down trains odd.
A special train will have an
additional ‘A’ if it has the same composition and route as an existing train.
The systematic numbering of trains started in 1989 ever since the computerised reservation system came into play. Earlier, all passenger reservation was done manually and train numbering followed no set format. “Trains had two or three digits numbers, but after the computerised PRS was introduced, the system changed,’’ said a CR official.
At that time, there were only nine zones, hence 1-9. Konkan Railway came later and got zero. In 1997, the process of having 16 zones came into being; this was completed in 2003. This is the reason why many zones share the number from one to nine as their prefix. Each zone falls in either one of the five PRSs—Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Calcutta and Secunderbad.
This unique numbering system was done by the Indian Railway conference association (IRCA). CR officials said, “IRCA allotted a unique number to each railway. Nowadays, respective railways in coordination with the Railway Board decide the numbering while adhering to the basic principles as laid down.’’
But even as most trains follow this system, some do not adhere to rules. “Some still have threedigit numbers like passenger trains and special gauge services like Neral-Matheran,’’ said chief PRO, CR, S C Mudgerikar.
THE NUMBER GAME
0 is for Konkan Railway 1 is for CR, West Central Railway (Bhopal and Jabalpur division) and North Central Railway (Jhansi, Agra div) 2 is for superfasts, Shatabdi and Jan Shatabdi trains regardless of zones 3 is shared by Eastern Railway and East Central Railway (Hazipur div) 4 is for Northern Railway, North Central Railway (Allahabad div) and North West Railway (Bikaner div) 5 is shared by North Eastern Railway and North-east Frontier Railway 6 is for Southern Railway and South WR (Mysore and Bengaluru div) 7 is shared by South Central Railway and South Western Railway (Hubli div) 8 is for South Eastern Railway, South East Central (Bilaspur, Raipur and Nagpur) and East Coast Railway (Khoda, Sambalpur and Waltaire div) 9 is for Western Railway, North Western Railway (Ajmer, Jaipur, Kota and Jodhpur) and West Central Railway

Siemens commissions Aurangabad railway bogie unit
The Hindu April 29

Siemens Rolling Stock Pvt. Ltd., a 100 per cent subsidiary of Siemens, has set up the first dedicated bogie plant at Aurangabad with an initial investment of Rs. 200 crore. The factory will provide direct employment to about 250 people and indirect employment to about 1,000 people.

According to a company statement, the greenfield facility will manufacture high performance and superior quality bogies for locomotives, passenger coaches, electric multiple units and metros. It has been set up in technological collaboration with the Siemens AG bogie facility at Graz, Austria.

Siemens will provide the latest bogie solutions for the Indian and Asian markets through the factory which has the capacity to manufacture about 800 customised bogies annually, with scope for expansion to suit the market requirement. The bogies meet the European standards, that is, EN norms, and will have a minimum life of 25 years and a lower lifecycle cost.

^^:banana:

Eastern Coast Railways -MCRW to handle 150 coaches in a month

Bhubaneswar, Apr 29 : The Internal restructuring and Group incentive Scheme have helped the Mancheswar Carriage Repair Workshop (MCRW) of the Eastern Coast Railways (ECoR) to reach a milestone of 110 coach outturn in a month, according to its Chief Works Manager S K Pankaj.Talking to a group of visiting newsmen at the Workshop, considered to be the youngest and dynamic establishment in the ECoR, Mr Pankaj said it would soon handle nearly 150 coaches in a month in the coming years with the investment of Rs 25 crore.He said till 2001, the workshop was turning out 40-42 coaches only per month but there has been a quantum jump ever since the group incentive scheme was introduced among the workers.Mr Pankaj said in 2001 the outturn of the workshop was 530 but over the decade, it has become self sufficient for the ECoR with the figure rising to over 100 coaches, including 15 AC coaches and nearly 20 corroded coaches.

The chief workshop manager said the division being located on the coastal zone, corrosion of the coaches was a major problem faced by the workshop.On an average the workshop received 15 coaches heavily corroded for a total overhauling and these coaches are repaired with a special corten steel manufactured by the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) for its high anti corrosion value.

http://www.newkerala.com/news/fullnews-98881.html

IIT-Kgp to put railways on fast track (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/IIT-Kgp-to-put-railways-on-fast-track/articleshow/5874665.cms)

KOLKATA: Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur will carry out extensive research on developing cutting edge technologies, including high-speed trains and better security mechanisms, for Indian Railways.

At least 12 areas have been identified by the institute and the railway ministry in which research will be initiated. A Centre for Railway Research (CRR) has been set up by the ministry at the institute, which comprises faculty of at least 10 departments to initiate research in the chosen areas. The railway ministry will pump in an initial amount of Rs 120 crore to get the centre working.

According to the MoU that was recently signed between the ministry and IIT-Kgp, the research would focus on areas such as heavy haul technology, vehicle dynamics, high-speed technologies, energy-efficient traction power supply systems, track research, use of artificial intelligence for predictive maintenance and management, material sciences for railway-related composites, including rubber, polymer and insulation materials, development of integrated/embedded processors for railway applications, applications for access control, security and safety, including biometrics, non-conventional drives and technology, including Maglev, LIM and remote sensing, and measurement of overhead equipment, tracks and signals.

The maximum on-track speed in India has been 130 kmph. Now, the ministry wants Indian trains to enter the high-speed' zone by achieving the global standard of 260 kmph. "We are indeed looking at high-speed trains. This doesn't mean designing only the train and the engine, but also tracks that will support the such trains. So, while a lot of stress would be laid on vehicle dynamics (designing trains that are stable and do not vibrate despite the high speed), a significant portion of the research would focus on developing fracture-proof tracks and sensing equipment that would diagnose failures on time. Withstanding the load of high-speed trains is not easy and would mean extensive relaying of tracks," said Siddhartha Mukherjee, a faculty member of the electrical engineering department who is also a spokesperson for CRR. Magnetic levitation and linear electric motion will also constitute an important part of the research.

Blasts triggered by insurgents by planting explosives on tracks or inside compartments is another cause for concern. The institute has been asked to develop remote-sensing equipment that would preempt such occurrences. "We have been asked to include biometrics while developing the security aspects, making impersonation impossible. Again, remote sensing of track and signal conditions would help provide information on impending dangers and preventing accidents," explained Mukherjee.

CRR will offer PhD programmes in research areas related to the railways. It will also involve IIT BTech and MTech students in research projects and offer course electives related to railway technology. Railway officers will be sent on deputation to CRR to participate in R&D projects and training programmes.

^^

Another myopic view taken by Neta Mamata by doling out projects to W. Bengal exclusively. All IITs, NITs and other institutes need to be involved in this endeavor. Many of these institutes have a innovation center, wherein students can try out new concepts and ideas. We need the IR to take the lead in defining a project and then have the IITs, NITs and other Engg institutes work on delivering specific component solutions. The young generation is brimming with ideas and they can solve the most complex problems quite easily. Need to provide a competitive environment with incentives like cash prizes, national award recognition, etc. Also need to involve the industrial design folks to come up with eye catching designs. Project needs to extend into signals/safety, railway stations the whole works.

^
problem is barry (and not just IR, even corporate India)

there seems to be this issue of seniority with age, whereby is somebody is older regardless your ideas are better than him you are ignored due to his age.

That needs to be changed.


IR dont need some kind of cutting edge technology. They just need to implement the basics correctly for there to be dramatic improvement in services. Like making the tracks 100% electrified and replacing warn out tracks and improving signalling.

Underlining the need to improve sanitation at railway stations, a Parliamentary committee has suggested that CCTV cameras be used to keep track of the level of cleanliness on platforms, apart from ensuring security.

"Railways should explore the feasibility of providing CCTV cameras to keep track on the level of cleanliness in stations and platforms," Public Accounts Committee has said.

The job should be assigned to an agency other than the one involved in ensuring security, it said while revealing various shortcomings on cleanliness and sanitation in Indian Railways.

It desired that the Ministry must resort to "out of the box thinking on this issue and must display readiness and swiftness to measure the sanitary conditions."

Earlier, Railways had objected to suggestion for use of CCTV cameras for looking into cleanliness on the grounds that the cameras are being used only for ensuring security in station premises and both the functions by one agency will not be possible.

The committee also recommended that Railways should put in place an institutional mechanism at the apex level dedicated towards cleanliness and sanitation in Indian Railways.

It observed that the Railway Ministry should frame a policy on waste management and lay down a mechanism whereby the quantum of garbage generated on stations can be assessed "realistically".

This would ensure adequate collection, segregation and disposal facilities along with putting in place necessary infrastructure, the committee said.

"The Ministry should outlay a dedicated budget exclusively meant for sanitation and cleanliness on Indian Railways with a provision for year wise increment on the same," it further said.

The committee recommended the Ministry to ensure that the housekeeper should undertake periodic inspection onboard trains several times a day.

Though it appreciated the fact that several measures have been initiated by Railways to improve cleanliness, it however, expressed concern over Railways "inability" to quantify or lay down a benchmark to assess the level of cleanliness at stations and in trains.

Source: Hindustan Times

Competition for Re-designing Indian Railways' Logo: http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=TOIKM/2010/05/05&PageLabel=7&ForceGif=true&EntityId=Ad00707&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T

dude whats up with u??
stop posting the same message in each and every thread..

Waiting endlessly for trains to pass at the railway crossing would soon be a thing of the past as authorities have got the approaval of installing modern panel-locking system. The device would immediately send the signal on the distance between the crossing and an approching train and lock the gate when a train nears.

According to information, railway authorities in Delhi has approaved a project of Rs 1.5 crore for each of the city stations under Ferozepur Division. The work is expected to be completed within this year.

Divisional railway manager Bishwesh Chaubey said, “We have got the approval would install the devices at all crossings by the end of this year.The new device will send signals when a train nears the crossing. The gate will be lowered automatically and lifted the moment the train passes.”

“Presently, the procedure is manual and time-consuming. When the person on duty gets the message about an approaching train, he closes the gate. But sometimes, if the train gets delayed, he is not allowed to open the gate before proper confirmation. In such situations, commuters are compelled to wait endlessly,” he added.

Expressing happiness at the proposal, residents are waiting for its early implementation. Speaking about it, a citizen, Jatin Bawa, “Sometimes, a train does not pass the crossing even after it has been closed for around half-an-hour. It is difficult to wait, especially in this scorching heat and when you have pressing demands at hand.”

Reema, another commuter, said, “When technology has influenced all areas of our living, it is only railways who are still using traditional ways. It definitely needs to be changed with the changing scenario.”

Source: TNN

Kolkata, May 9 – Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee Sunday flagged off the Sanskriti Express exhibition train from Howrah station as part of the celebrations of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s 150th birth anniversary and to showcase his life and philosophy.
The five-coach train, adorned with various literary creations and paintings of Tagore, will touch important stations in various parts of the country before returning to Kolkata May 8 next year.

‘It is our tribute to Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore on his 150th birth anniversary. This train will travel across India for one year. This train will carry various literary creations and paintings of Kabiguru,’ said Banerjee at the flag off ceremony in the presence of several intellectuals and artists.

The five air-conditioned coaches have been modified at the Liluah Railway Workshop in Howrah to depict Tagore’s achievements and thoughts.

The first coach, named ‘Jibon Smriti’, will depict the life of Tagore through photographs, while the second ‘Gitanjali’ will exhibit his poems and songs.

‘Jogajog’/'Muktodhara’ will exhibit his literature, the fourth ‘Chitrarekha’ will depict paintings of Tagore and other eminent artists. The last ‘Smaranika’ will exhibit and sell handicraft and other items from Santiniketan, founded by the poet.

Singer Dwijen Mukhopadhaya, veteran dancer Amala Shanker, leading theatre actor and Railway Committee on Heritage & Culture chairperson Shaoli Mitra, painter Suvaprasana and writer Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay were among those felicitated by Banerjee on the occasion.

‘We will construct a Rabindra Museum at Howrah and Gitanjali Museum at Bolpur. We will also form a cultural promotion board of railways just like its sports promotion board.

The board members will be constituted by Suvaprasana, Shaoli Mitra, Bratya Basu, and many other intellectuals,’ said Banerjee.

‘We are also having plans to open rail service between Epar Bangla (West Bengal) and Opar Bangla (Bangladesh). We want a union of the culture and traditions of the two Bengals,’ she added.

Tagore, who was born in 1861 and died in 1941, is among the most revered writers in the world who churned out poems, plays, songs, novels and short stories. He was the first Asian to win the Nobel Prize in 1913.

IANS

Nowhere is the ordeal of doing business in India better exemplified than in a tiny stretch of railway track in the sun-baked state of Gujarat.

It is here that Bombardier Canada’s global transportation giant, has been literally stopped in its tracks by India’s infamous government bureaucracy.

The company has spent more than $45-million building a new train factory that has created 750 desperately needed jobs. Despite the investment, Bombardier has been stymied in its request to use a 300-metre section of the local railway to deliver new subway cars to its customer in New Delhi, 800 kilometres to the northeast.

“It has been more than 14 months we have been dealing with the authorities trying to get permission to transport our trains. We met this morning, in fact,” says a frustrated Pierre St-Onge, the general manager of the Savli facility.

For a foreign business to succeed in India, it seems, the devil is always lurking in the details. If it's not red tape, it's navigating through widespread corruption, or finding suitable local suppliers and qualified workers, or – for Canadian companies – overcoming a history of failed ventures.

In its ambitious quest to crack India’s burgeoning rail market, there are plenty of details that Bombardier will have to get just right.

Asia, and India in particular, represents a huge opportunity for the Montreal-based plane and train maker.

With a fast-growing middle class and rising national income, India is emerging as a global player of consequence. Analysts expect the developing country to post gross domestic product growth of more than 7 per cent in 2010 and 8 per cent plus next year, making it an attractive target for foreign business and investment.

Beckoning Bombardier specifically are India’s ambitious plans to transform its railway system. In particular, initiatives to build a “metro” system in every city with a population of more than three million people mean that more than 20 new urban train systems or extensions could be built over the next 10 years.

India also expects to add 25,000 kilometres of intercity rail lines over the next decade, according to the Railway Ministry. Billions of dollars in contracts for locomotives, signalling systems and metro cars will be up for grabs.

If only all those details can be mastered.

LATE TO THE PARTY

If Bombardier is to thrive in this nation of 1.1 billion, it will have to buck the Canadian corporate trend.

A generation ago, Canadian politicians and executives failed to foresee India’s ascendance from poorhouse to powerhouse. Relations were distant, and India’s co-opting of Canada's Candu technology for its nuclear weapons program only added to the chill.

Canadian trade policy and corporate initiatives largely ignored India’s economic reforms of the early 1990s. Now Ottawa and Canadian companies are scrambling to catch up.

“It took a long time for Canada to reverse and come up with a more nuanced policy that recognized India’s place in the world and its dramatic reorientation of its economy.” says Yuen Pau Woo, the president of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. “By the time we came around to that recognition, we had lost decades of connections, understanding of the economy and, above all, goodwill.”

In 2010, save for a handful of exceptions like frozen French fry giant McCain Foods and insurer Sun Life Financial, Canadian companies have not found success in the world’s largest democracy. Even though Canada shares Commonwealth history and extensive blood ties with India, annual trade amounts to just over $2-billion each way. India currently accounts for less than 1 per cent of both Canadian exports and direct foreign investment.

The collapse of the U.S. economy in 2009 has served as a wakeup call to Canada, forcing it to scan the globe for alternative markets. But in India, as in much of the Asia-Pacific region, Canada is arriving late to the party.

“The Indians are now courted by so many other countries, we are just another suitor trying to get their attention,” Mr. Woo says.

Bombardier’s gleaming factory certainly testifies to its commitment to winning more business here. The company decided to build the Savli plant after it won a $727-million (U.S.) contract to supply 424 cars to the rapidly expanding Delhi Metro system in 2007. But the factory will need to win more orders to be viable.

India’s cheap labour allows Bombardier to assemble trains here at a much lower cost than at its factories in Europe. And unlike its operations in China, where it has local partners, Bombardier enjoys the autonomy of operating on its own in India.

The rest of the exploding Southeast Asian market also beckons. The factory in Savli could be used to supply metro cars or commuter trains to countries like Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Pakistan.

THE BAKSHEESH FACTOR

It’s 43 Celsius, an unseasonably sweltering day in Savli. Surrounded by manicured lawns – a rare sight in India – Bombardier's factory is surprisingly cool, even with its hangar-sized doors yawning in the midday heat.

At the end of one of the facility’s three main buildings, a worker operates a robot that is spot-welding the shiny stainless steel train cars. Further down the assembly line, another worker uses a hammer to smooth out the edges of a large section of car body. The polished concrete floor is so clean it looks wet.

Under the direction of Mr. St-Onge, a Montrealer who first worked for Bombardier in 1975, the factory was completed on time and on budget. It took just 18 months from the ground breaking until the first metro cars rolled off the assembly line – a Bombardier record.

It wasn't easy – finding local suppliers to make components to Bombardier's standards and employees with the right skill sets was extraordinarily difficult. Also, the land under the factory had to be raised by 1.6 metres to prevent flooding damage during the rainy season. The final factors spelling sleepless nights for executives were India’s widespread corruption and suffocating bureaucracy. “It was a nightmare. It was really, really a nightmare,” Mr. St-Onge concedes.

In a place where baksheesh is regarded by many foreign companies as just another business expense, Bombardier says it has refused to pay bribes or kickbacks to speed its progress. But there have been plenty of opportunities to do so.

“That makes it very difficult for us. I know that if I would just give 100 rupees, it would get done within seconds. But I cannot. So it will take a week instead of seconds. This is where it gets really mind-boggling,” Mr. St-Onge says.

All the challenges will be worth it, of course, if Bombardier can cash in on India’s rail revolution. Despite the country’s huge population growth and rapid urbanization, new lines and extensions have been developed at a snail’s pace. Since 1950, the network has expanded by little more than 10,000 km, or less than 170 km a year.

Now the country wants to transform its massive, antiquated, overcrowded system. State-owned Indian Railways already boasts the second-largest rail network on the planet, comprising more than 64,000 km worth of track that transports about 19 million passengers a day on 7,000 trains.

According to the Railway Ministry’s ambitious blueprint, that’s about to change. More than 25,000 km of new lines are slated to be completed by 2020. There are also plans for a dedicated freight corridor between major centres. And for the first time, Indian Railways is considering buying entire trains from private companies, rather than purchasing components and building its own vehicles. In addition to the budding metro systems, which could create demand for up to 1,000 cars a year, there will be huge contracts to supply commuter trains, light rail cars and long-haul trains for both passengers and freight.

Bombardier has actually been operating in India for more than three decades, but until recently it only made propulsion and signalling systems here. With the new facility, it can build entire trains and the company can now deliver all the key components from one plant, a first for the company globally.

The rail business is a cutthroat arena where Bombardier faces stiff competition from European companies such as Siemens and Alstom as well as a growing number of Asian firms. With the new Savli plant, Bombardier believes it has gained first-mover advantage. “This is a market in which we need to stamp our presence strongly. What could be stronger than setting up your own train manufacturing unit?” asks Rajeev Jyoti who, at 57, has headed Bombardier's Indian operations for more than a decade.

“You have metros booming and the railways are opening. I’ve been in this business for a long time and it has never been this hot,” he says.

Including an engineering facility in Hyderabad, Bombardier now has more than 1,200 employees in India.

Yet even with the advantage of its own local factory, Bombardier’s chances of scoring the lion’s share of the coming rail and metro orders in India and beyond are hardly certain. So far, the company’s trains have been making headlines in India for all the wrong reasons.

GLITCHES AND SAFETY CONCERNS

“A Manic Monday for Commuters,” barked a headline in the Times of India, detailing problems with the Bombardier trains. “Bombardier ride isn’t that smooth on Delhi Metro tracks,” taunted another publication, the Pioneer, which outlined a spate of technical issues that have plagued the new cars.

Since delivering its first car in June of last year, Bombardier’s Savli factory has supplied more than 100 cars to the Delhi Metro. The deliveries have cost more than expected because without full access to the main rail line, the metro cars have had to be trucked to Delhi by road. Still, the Bombardier trains offer commuters in India’s capital a quieter ride and a better air conditioning system than the cars supplied by rival Hyundai Rotem, a consortium led by the conglomerate Hyundai that includes India's Bharat Earth Movers Ltd.

But Bombardier’s trains have also been plagued by glitches and safety concerns, which have been exhaustively documented by India’s excitable press corps. In February, three separate incidents in one evening caused major delays on the Delhi Metro, stranding thousands of commuters. On one Bombardier train, the doors wouldn’t open; another had problems with its motor system; a third shot sparks from its roof during a heavy rainstorm.

Bombardier officials insist that these are “minor” integration issues that will soon be ironed out. Mr. Jyoti suggests the pace of the Delhi Metro expansion has played a role. “The speed at which Delhi Metro is building has to be clocking some kind of world record,” he says. “You need time to integrate trains into a system. This is normal anywhere in the world.”

Bombardier is now bidding on a contract to supply cars for the next Delhi Metro extension. But Rotem was awarded the most recent contract to supply 150 cars for the latest line.

Bombardier also submitted a bid to supply cars to a new section of the aging and cramped subway system in Calcutta. A call for bids to supply cars to a new metro planned for the southern city of Chennai is also expected this year.

Mr. Jyoti is adamant his company is well positioned to win more orders and that the Delhi glitches won’t hurt Bombardier's chances.

“When you talk to people who know this game, like Delhi Metro top management, they say very clearly they are happy with the ride quality, the low noise and the added functionality [such as outlets allowing commuters to charge their cellphones]. They are more than happy with the upgrade we have done with our trains compared to the Rotem trains. There is no denying that our product platform is a steep change in quality,” he says.

A TRANSIT 'SEA CHANGE'

Launched with a single small line in 2002, the fast-growing Delhi Metro is often held up as a symbol of the new India. It has become a required destination for visiting dignitaries such as The Prince of Wales.

A visit underground to a station provides a dramatic contrast to the chaotic traffic congestion, noise and dust found above on the streets of New Delhi. It is an impressive, world-class system that carries about one million passengers a day over 190 km of track. The stations, despite swelling crowds, are clean and relatively orderly – in part because of a heavy security presence.

The system has had a dramatic impact on New Delhi and its 16 million residents, reducing traffic congestion, improving commute times and uniting disparate parts of the city.

“It has been a complete sea change,” boasts Anuj Dayal, Delhi Metro’s chief public relations officer. “Suddenly every city in India wants to have a metro and we are the consultants for them.”

The 65 km of track comprising phase one of the Delhi Metro system cost $2.3-billion (U.S.) to build. Phase two, most of which is now operational, is scheduled to be completed ahead of New Delhi’s hosting of the Commonwealth Games in October. This stage consists of 125 km of track costing $4.3-billion.

More than half of the funding for the Delhi Metro was provided by the Japan Bank of International Cooperation, an arm of the Japanese government. The Delhi Metro says it is already paying down the debt – this thanks to being one of a handful of major rapid transit systems in the world that is generating an operating profit.

Like Bombardier executives, Delhi Metro officials play down the problems that have plagued the Canadian company’s trains. Mr. Dayal says there is close scrutiny on the system because “you have to pay a price for this kind of popularity. A small incident on the Metro is blown way out of proportion.”

As for Bombardier’s response to the glitches, he says, “They are adapting. Initial interface issues were there. This is normal. They are not that bad, actually. Initially it was there but it has settled down. We are treating them on par [with Rotem].”

THE WORK FORCE

It’s time for a shift change back at Bombardier's plant in Savli. A fresh crew of workers march in to begin their eight-hour workday. They’ve been delivered by a fleet of buses from the city of Vadodora, about 35 km away.

They are all men. Most appear to be less than 30 years old – not surprising in a country where half the population is under 25.

Instead of recruiting workers with previous experience in high-tech manufacturing, Bombardier hires most of its employees straight out of college or university and provides specialized training.

“That way you don’t have someone with 10 years experience and have to undo what they learned and reboot them like a computer,” Mr. St-Onge explains. “I’d rather have somebody fresh out of school who wants to get a good job and learn, than to have to convince somebody this is the right way to do it,” he adds.

The training will only pay off if Bombardier can avoid the increasingly common problem of “job hopping” that has lately plagued companies in India. Once previously unskilled workers gain some industrial expertise, they will often jump ship to another factory offering slightly higher wages. So far, Bombardier says it has managed to achieve retention rates that are above average – in part by promising workers the company is in India for the long haul.

Bombardier’s challenges in India, while numerous, are not uncommon, analysts say. The company will simply have to be patient and diligent if it wants to win a larger slice of the fast-growing market.

“Things happen a little more slowly in India, with all the rules and the government. In China, they draw a line and immediately start building a subway. In India it takes 10 years. But the subway still gets built,” says Richard Stoneman of Dundee Securities Corp.

http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/static/business/article1561138.html

Competition for Re-designing Indian Railways' Logo: http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=TOIKM/2010/05/05&PageLabel=7&ForceGif=true&EntityId=Ad00707&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T

My friend Atanu Dutta (Skyscrapercity Id: designsonu) has sent the following logo for the competition..

http://i39.tinypic.com/xgeanc.jpg

It's really nice. I'm not a big fan of the stars at the bottom. I'd much rather have the IR motto or something else there. Great effort nonetheless

IRCON to construct Sikkim rail link

New Delhi, May 14 (PTI) In a step towards linking Sikkim to the rest of the country through rail, IRCON has signed an MoU with North-east Frontier Railway for execution of the project.

The project, to be completed at a cost of Rs 3,380 crore, is expected to be completed in the next five years, said a senior railway official.

The 45-km long broad gauge railway link will connect Sevok in North Bengal to Rangpo in Sikkim.

The rail link will pass through the foothills of Kanchenjunga mountain range and Teesta river valley. It will have more than 32 km length in tunnels, 28 bridges spanning deep gorges/valleys with likely bridge pier height equivalent to the Qutub Minar.

The project is being billed as an engineering challenge for the Railways, the official said.

IRCON, the Railway PSU, is credited for its work on the prestigious Kashmir Rail Link project and taking up several international assignments

http://www.ptinews.com/news/653462_I...kkim-rail-link

Looks like Momtata and IR babus are marching backward with their heads up the proverbial wazoo...

http://beta.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/article49233.ece

The Railways find themselves forced to settle for merely “optimally developing” the Capital’s New Delhi railway station, unable to get the necessary clearance from the authorities concerned for converting it into a “world class station”.

Local civic agencies like the New Delhi Municipal Council , the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, the Delhi Development Authority and the Delhi Traffic Police have opposed the Railways’ proposed Rs.9,000-crore mega-project on the ground that it would worsen the current problems of congestion, parking and sewage, located as the station is in the vicinity of the busy Connaught Place area.

Not receiving the mandatory approvals, the Railways find the way ahead blocked, so much so that they had to give up their idea of extending the deadline for considering the statutory requisition for qualification after two extensions that expired last October.

The bidders for the project, mostly renowned entities from across the globe, considered it pragmatic to make a silent exit withdrawing the security money deposited with the Railways. With the project not getting approved, the Railways couldn’t proceed further to the next stage of bidding.

The proposed project, now dead for all practical purposes, envisaged state-of-the-art facilities for the station stretching the infrastructure on an additional 86 acres of land.

The Railways’ Expert Committee on Infrastructure has now decided to “optimally develop” the available infrastructure of the New Delhi station recommending that the mega-project be abandoned.

Meanwhile New Delhi Railway Station has witnessed the following:

Two persons were today killed and at least 15 passengers injured when a last minute change of platform for a Patna-bound train triggered a stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station, facing summer rush.

And Momtata orders...
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday ordered an enquiry into the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station which claimed two lives and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased.

Incompetence all over the place.

this is second such incident if i remember correctly , patna bound train mishap , wht if they make world class rly station if the people using it remains pan and gurtka type , we do have some times changes in platform of train but never such mad rush to crush other weak passengers ,
delhi ready to become patna ....:)



http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Delhi/2-killed-15-injured-in-stampede-at-New-Delhi-railway-station-/articleshow/5937159.cms

NEW DELHI: Two persons were on Sunday killed and at least 15 passengers injured when a last minute change of platform for a Patna-bound train triggered a stampede ..

My friend Atanu Dutta (Skyscrapercity Id: designsonu) has sent the following logo for the competition..

http://i39.tinypic.com/xgeanc.jpg

good effort but I think we need a logo that is akin to the next generation..

A bit more casual, less rigid, and easy toremember and still unique !

Here are some images for inspiration..


shows a wheel.. movement. Howabout something similar in the tricolour ?
http://www.vehrcommunications.com/images/Metro_Logo.jpg

something like this.. showing movement/railtracks.. and the worlds 'indian railway'.. in English ( big ) and Hindi ( small )..
http://olp.spreadshirt.net/entries/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/spread_logo_3.jpg

Indianish symbol.. lotus..taking away the brutal/metalic/industrialist feel to the railway by adding warmth/nature etc
http://www.bpdesign.ca/images/logo_mef.jpg

or some abstract futuristic image like this... representing the chakra..
http://image.shutterstock.com/display_pic_with_logo/169978/169978,1216903873,15/stock-photo-modern-abstract-design-futuristic-creation-ideal-for-letterhead-or-logo-technological-and-15289894.jpg

I actually tried out. Its very simple. Showed it to my dad, he loved it. So just showing it here and am not sending it.

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/9279/irlogo.jpg (http://img261.imageshack.us/i/irlogo.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

The train is made by a mirror image of "R". The chute on the top is a half "I" with blue flame coming from it.

Janata’s Mamata gives plush saloon car the miss

When was the last time that RA-1 was taken out of the Northern Railway siding? Officials can’t remember. Ever since Mamata Banerjee took over as railway minister in 2009, this saloon car has fallen into disuse. RA-1 is the code assigned to the plush saloon used by the railway minister. While her predecessors used this saloon on a regular basis, Mamata prefers to travel economy class.
Saloon cars date back from the days of the Raj. While a majority of Indians can’t even afford air-conditioned rail travel, these coaches are compartmentalised into a bedroom, living room, a dining space and kitchen apart for living space for attendants and cooks. The railway minister is within her rights to order the saloon to be attached to any train she feels like and travel across the country.
“During his tenure as railway minister, Lalu Prasad travelled on a regular basis in the saloon. He would take it to Bihar almost every week. Before that, Jaffer Sharief made ‘full’ use of the saloon. He liked to travel in style. Nitish Kumar and Ram Vilas Paswan also used the saloon but for official reasons. Mamata Banerjee is completely against use of the saloon. Even when she became railway minister earlier, she refused to use it. She told us to lease it out instead, to earn some additional revenue,” a senior official said.
Lalu, during his five years as railway minister, used the saloon on 369 occasions. Most of these trips were made to Bihar. The details of the use of the saloon between May 2004 and June 2008, were provided by the railways recently in response to a Right to Information Act application. Lalu had also used the saloon to travel to Kanyakumari, Ernakulam, Tinsukia and Salem.
“During Lalu’s tenure, we had to keep the saloon ready at all times. There was no knowing when he would ask it to be attached to some train. Trouble is that the saloon can’t be attached to all trains. It’s top speed is about 110 km per hour and can’t be attached to trains like Rajdhanis or Shatabdis. Now that Mamata has taken over, we are sure that she will not use the saloon. Though it is kept ready for use, she has never shown any inclination,” the official said.
Mamata has apparently told railway officials that she does not like to waste money on such luxuries. She has also told senior officials to use saloon cars sparingly, that too only when on official duty.

Source: TNN

I actually tried out. Its very simple. Showed it to my dad, he loved it. So just showing it here and am not sending it.

http://img261.imageshack.us/img261/9279/irlogo.jpg (http://img261.imageshack.us/i/irlogo.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

The train is made by a mirror image of "R". The chute on the top is a half "I" with blue flame coming from it.

engine ko polio ho gaya hai kya???

hmm, is the deadline for the logo entry over ? If not I might try out a few design. Whats the criteria ? the link for entry please ?

hmm, is the deadline for the logo entry over ? If not I might try out a few design. Whats the criteria ? the link for entry please ?

boy its over.

hmm, is the deadline for the logo entry over ? If not I might try out a few design. Whats the criteria ? the link for entry please ?

Yah, as mentioned, it's over. However, this was the original notice:

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW&BaseHref=TOIKM/2010/05/05&PageLabel=7&ForceGif=true&EntityId=Ad00707&ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T

Railways to create western, eastern freight corridors

Chennai, May 21 (PTI) The Railways has planned to create western and eastern freight corridors from Delhi and Mumbai and Delhi and Kolkata, Minister of State for Railways K H Muniyappa today said.

"Freight being the important earning of Indian Railways, a parallel freight corridor has been planned. The western freight corridor from Delhi to Mumbai for 1,484 kms would cost Rs 26,000 crore and the eastern corridor from Delhi to Kolkata for a length of 1,856 km would cost Rs 24,000 crore," he told reporters here.

The lesser cost for the eastern corridor was due to the availability of plain terrain compared to the hilly area in the western corridor, he said, adding the freight corridors would be fully electrified section.

"Feasibility study has commenced for the southern freight corridor on Mumbai-Bangalore-Chennai section," he added.

http://www.ptinews.com/news/663249_Railways-to-create-western--eastern-freight-corridors

Indian Railway revenue earnings up by 7pct

It is reported that the total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during the period from May 1st to 10th 2010 were INR 2384.21 crore as compared to INR 2208.83 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 7.94%.

As per report the total goods earnings have gone up from INR 1500.00 crore during the period from May 1st to 10th 2009 to INR 1634.00 crore during May 1st to 10th 2010 showing an increase of 8.93%. The total passenger revenue earnings during the period May 1st to 10th 2010 were INR 664.80 crore as compared to INR 629.44 crore during the same period last year, reflecting an increase of 5.62%.

The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to INR 64.96 crore during this period compared to INR 63.09 crore during the same period last year, showing an increase of 2.96%.

The total approximate number of passengers booked during the period May 1st to 10th 2010 were 218.59 million as compared to 201.10 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 8.70%. In the suburban and non suburban sectors, the number of passengers booked during May 1st to 10th 2010 were 113.92 million and 104.67 million as compared to 100.57 million and 100.53 million during the same period last year, registering an increase of 13.27% and 4.12% respectively.


http://www.steelguru.com/news/index/MTQ2NjMw/Indian_Railway_revenue_earnings_up_by_7pct.html

My wetdream for Indian High Speed Rail:

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/9091/indiahighspeedrail.png

While building the Delhi-Mumbai freight corridor, they should build high-speed rail tracks right next to it.

While building the Delhi-Mumbai freight corridor, they should build high-speed rail tracks right next to it.

IMHO a high-speed rail corridor makes sense only when it can compete with time taken to fly. A Mumbai-delhi corridor does'nt make sense to me. Chennai-Bangalore maybe.

I think a Delhi-Mumbai corridor would make sense if it made stops along the way, in cities such as Surat, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, so that it makes fair competition with airlines, especially for those travelling between points along the route.

My wetdream for Indian High Speed Rail:

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/9091/indiahighspeedrail.png
add kolkata to chennai as well.But let me tell you it has only added to all our frustrations.I dont see it happening in the near future.
I am very positive about its success. For example, Mumbai to new Delhi is around 1400 KM. A HSRL of avrage speed 270 KMPH can make it in 5.5 hours. Price it some where between 1500 to 2000 Rs. Definitely many flyers will opt for it. and it will be profitable too.
I think the Railway Bhavan doesnt have the nerve even to check this as a pilot project.

Terry & Farrel to submit fresh plan for world class station (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Terry--Farrel-to-submit-fresh-plan-for-world-class-station/articleshow/5964730.cms)

NEW DELHI: After failing to obtain green signal from DDA for New Delhi world class station plan, Railways have asked a Hongkong-based consultant to
submit a fresh master plan modifying the previous one.

"Terry & Farrel, which prepared the master plan for the proposed New Delhi world class station in 2008, has been asked to modify it by reducing the commercial utilisation area by half," said a senior Railway Ministry official.

As per the revised plan, 50 per cent of the commercial utilisation area at Paharganj side will be reduced for getting approval from the DDA (Delhi Development Authority) for the Rs 12,000 crore plan.

Since the consultant was involved in preparing the master plan, it would be easier for them to modify the existing one as required in the revised plan, said the official.

World class with those planted pots, sure.

Terry & Farrel to submit fresh plan for world class station (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Terry--Farrel-to-submit-fresh-plan-for-world-class-station/articleshow/5964730.cms)

I read about Terry and Farrel, they seem to be a good one.let us hope for some fruitful things.

HIGH SPEED RAILS ---DESPERATE NEED IN INDIA AND THAT TOO SOON.. BUT BEFORE THAT RAILWAY STATIONS TO BE MADE WITH SAME PREPARATIONS..

looks like the new Railways logo has been finalized, and will be out during the CWG...


New Railway logo to be used during Commonwealth Games (http://www.ptinews.com/news/668057_New-Railway-logo-to-be-used-during-Commonwealth-Games)

A distinct new logo of Indian Railways which will be prominently featured on Commonwealth Games tickets and other related events of the biggest sporting extravaganza in the country has been finalised.

The logo will feature in the Games' tickets and on the special train which railways will flag off soon to promote the event that begins in October, a Railway Ministry official said.

While Railways is the lead partner of the Commonwealth Games, the IRCTC has bagged the contract for selling the event's tickets online including the inaugural and closing ceremony.

To select the logo, Indian Railways recently held a competition offering a prize of Rs five lakhs for the selected design.

The new logo represents the uniqueness and vision of Indian Railways, said the official, adding, it is innovative in nature and has a special recall value.

crossposting from the CWG thread....

According to WikiPedia this is the initial design for Delhi Railway Station.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/50/Ndrs.JPG

:drool:

Faith rides to hill shrines on new rail line

Quietly but surely, the Indian Railways has started work to counter China’s world-feted 1,140-km Qinghai-Tibet line, built at a cost of $4.2 billion.

The Railway Ministry has finally allocated Rs 40 crore in the year 2010-11 out of the estimated project cost of Rs 4,295.30 crore for the new rail line connecting Rishikesh, in the foothills of the Himalayas, to Karanprayag in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. In the second phase, the proposed line would extend up to Mana (height 3,150 metres approx), beyond Badrinath near the China border.

The sanction for the long-pending Rishikesh-Karanprayag project was given by the Railway Board after it got the status of National Project, with all the funding to be done under the auspice of the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA). The announcement in this regard was made in the last Budget session of Parliament. The board had earlier rejected the feasibility of this line as being commercially unviable since the internal rate of return (IRR) was found to be very low.

The proposed railway line between Rishikesh and Karanprayag would mean coming true of the dream project to run a rail track parallel to the route taken by the Ganga from its celestial abode in the Himalayas to the ocean at Gangasagar in West Bengal. As of now, there is an indirect link between Rishikesh and Howrah, but beyond Rishikesh the treacherous mountain terrain is approachable only by road.

Till early part of the last century, the shrines of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri — the Char Dhams of the Garhwal Himalayas — could be reached only by trekking through mountain paths. In the first half of the 20th century, the British built motorable roads. These were opened to pilgrim traffic in 1934. Rishikesh became the popular gateway to lofty mountains of the Garhwal Himalayas. The first segments of road were Rishikesh-Tehri-Dharasu, Rishikesh-Devprayag-Kirtinagar and Kotdwara-Srinagar-Chamoli.

Since the proposed line would run parallel to the flow of Ganga, it would be an engineering to marvel to see how the several confluences of the river’s tributaries are negotiated. The Rishikesh-Karanprayag rail line will be 150-km-long, a good 25 km shorter than the road distance. It will traverse through the districts of Dehradun, Tehri, Rudraprayag and Chamoli. The line will facilitate more comfortable and faster travel between Rishikesh and Karanprayag by reducing the pressure on road traffic. It will also allow outstation pilgrims easier access to the Kedarnath and Badrinath shrines.

The Ganga comes into existence at Devprayag with the coming together of two major tributaries – the Bhagirathi and the Alaknanda. While Bhagirathi river descends from the Gomukh glacier above Gangotri in Uttarkashi district, the Alaknanda descends at Mana.

Alaknanda river starts at the foot of the Satopanth and Bhagirath Kharak glaciers, near Tibet. The flow from these glaciers takes the shape of a river at Keshavprayag, near Mana, just above the shrine of Badrinath, where it is joined by the Saraswati. The river flows approximately 229 km through the Alaknanda valley, where it is joined by Dhauliganga (Vishnuprayag – 1,372 metres), Nandakini (Nandprayag – 914 metres), Pindar (Karanprayag – 788 metres) and Mandakini Rudraprayag). It meets the Bhagirathi at Devprayag (618 metres), where Ganga river is formed.

The Alaknanda is believed to have split off the celestial Ganga when it descended from Heaven.

The rail link from Rishikesh joins the Doon-Howrah line at Haridwar. The Doon-Howrah line, which is more than a century old, runs through the Gangetic plain on the north side of the river before it crosses the Ganga at Varanasi and reaches Mughalsarai, probably the busiest junction in North India. The total distance from Rishikesh to Howrah is 1,529 km.

The first survey for the Rishikesh-Karanprayag rail line was done in 1919 on the initiative of then Deputy Commissioner of Garhwal JM Clay. The second survey was done in 1996 and the project was not found financially viable. In 2009, the Railway Ministry rejected the project again on the same ground. After that, the Union Government decided to take up the line’s construction as a National Project, considering its importance strategically and for the region’s socio-economic development. The project is likely to be completed by 2019

http://www.dailypioneer.com/258609/Faith-rides-to-hill-shrines-on-new-rail-line.html

'Nobody is pushing for prestige or monument projects'

India’s plans for railway development are creating opportunities that Canadian major Bombardier is determined to exploit. Michael Beckmann, vice-president (group strategy) for Bombardier Transportation, spoke to Pallavi Aiyar about the company’s strategic interest in the market. Edited excerpts:

How important a market for Bombardier Transportation is India at present and, going forward, how do you expect this market to grow?

The key thing to note is that Bombardier Transportation has been in India with predecessor companies for more than 30 years. So, we really feel part of the household there. The Bric (Brazil, Russia, India and China) markets are important to many companies. But, for Bombardier, India and China are the most important strategically. This fact is clearly underlined by market studies, such as the one from UNIFE, our industry association, which puts growth of the railway market in Asia at some 4.4 per cent per annum for the next six years, driven mainly by India and China. Also, compare that growth in Europe, which is predicted to remain at about one per cent per year. So, we are not wondering whether or not to go to India, but how to best leverage what we already have there and how to best participate in India’s exciting growth and opportunities.

So, how do you intend to achieve these strategic aims?
There are three pillars to what we would like to further develop in India. First is the metro/mass transit business. We have taken a major step and developed in record time a greenfield site at Savli in Gujarat. That site is building metro cars for Delhi right now and we would like to leverage that and are looking for additional orders to serve additional growing Indian cities.

Second is the locomotives market where we have been active for many years on the propulsion side. The peculiar structure of the industry with Indian Railways controlling a larger proportion of the value chain has been a characteristic of this market. But, now there is a lot of activity because the transportation of goods is a bottleneck to India’s economic development and Indian Railways are looking to de-bottleneck this. There are two major opportunities — widely referred to as “Dankuni” and “Madhepura” projects, both geared towards increasing the capacity in India to supply locomotives to support the new freight corridors. We are in the bidding process.

The third pillar is the whole rail control/signaling business. We have been involved in rail control in India for many years. One of our biggest global showcases is the traffic management centre in Mumbai, which is very complex. But we are working on more than just that. We have just inaugurated state-of-the-art signaling for a mass transit line in Delhi that was partly developed in India. On top of that, there is our so-called product business. This is manufacturing of special signaling components, like track circuits, axle counters and so on. Lastly, there is the ETCS — the European train control system. We have a product for that, for which we would love to be considered as a supplier in India.

You constructed the Savli manufacturing facility from the greenfield stage to the ready-for-manufacturing stage in less than 18 months — a record for global industry standards and the fastest project ever implemented within Bombardier. How was this achieved and what does it tell us about the changing business environment in India?
There was a strong desire to have a large part of the Delhi metro production in India and we committed to that. But the plant in Savli resulted from a two-way pull and push. The pull came from the Gujarat state government, which was very interested in having the plant located there. The state government was excellent in swiftly responding to the needs and difficulties the company faced during the set-up period.

The push came from Bombardier’s past experience in the field that we leveraged, allocating the right resources. Some 20 years ago, Bombardier implemented a first transfer of technology to India with setting up a propulsion systems manufacturing site in Vadodara, close to the new Savli site. This experience and learnings from other countries enabled us to optimise the planning of this new manufacturing plant.

Do you have plans to utilise the advantages of India as a manufacturing base at a more global level, by exporting?
We would love to do that. Having the plant in Savli makes sense since it is our centre of expertise for stainless steel vehicles for mass transit in Asia. So, we will look for opportunities to use it as an export base.

Bombardier is also very active in China. How do you compare the Indian and Chinese markets for rail?
If you look at rail, India was off to a slower start compared to China. China is operating a high-speed rail network already and was very ambitious in the last few years. China deserves to have credit for making the choice that rail is a good thing and also effectively succeeding in building its high-speed rail network. The availability of fast transport is definitely different in India at the moment. Nobody talks about high speed in India. My personal feeling is that, in India, nobody is pushing for monument or prestige projects. The approach is more like we are trying to provide better transportation for our people. Also, Indian Railways are focused on freight, which is not glamorous but it keeps the economy going. China is also doing that but there is quite an emphasis on monuments, like the high-speed rail network for people to look at as well.

Going ahead, what do you think the global prospects for railways are? How did the economic crisis impact your industry?
In general, we are optimistic about the rail market because, if you need to transport heavy goods or lots of people, rail — as a system — is the most efficient and environmentally friendly way. In Europe, where rail has a longer history, cities would collapse without it. So, the fundamentals for rail are very positive. But, the crisis has highlighted some new issues. Our customers are often big government entities and we had first thought public infrastructure would be more immune to budget cuts than other areas. But public budgets are, in fact, under pressure in many places and a lot of rail investments are fuelled by public budgets. I think the financing of specific projects might need some changes. In the medium term, PPP (public private partnerships) might be the way forward — something about which there is a lot of talk in India.


http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/%5Cnobody-is-pushing-for-prestige-or-monument-projects%5C/395784/

According to WikiPedia this is the initial design for Delhi Railway Station.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/50/Ndrs.JPG

:drool:

^^ Yup, this is the initial design which has been selected for implementation , the work on it according to Officials will begun by MID 2011 and the completion time will be 18 Months...!!!!

Terry Farrell and Partners are commissioned to modernise and expand the station

But now they have to submit a new design after modifications as per DDA's objections.

But now they have to submit a new design after modifications as per DDA's objections.

Yup, there is speculation that the design would remain same however as per DDA arguments the size might be cut down...as DDA want to reduce the commercial area as per Delhi Traffic Police appeal..!!!

Mamata has apparently told railway officials that she does not like to waste money on such luxuries. She has also told senior officials to use saloon cars sparingly, that too only when on official duty.
Source: TNN

Oh, I am touched by Mamta-Neta's concern for not wasting money ... all monies are to be wasted in her home state only ...

so how does Mam-Net travel? does she really travel in economy class? by which I assume that the article is implying 2nd AC ...

if she is traveling by air, this is a drama ... attaching a saloon costs the Railways very little ... paying for airfare for her entourage *does* cost the Railways ... so, what's the story?

By the way, I grew up in an era when saloons were not that big a deal ... I traveled on saloons probably hundreds of times ...

^^
These Netas want the common people to believe that they are frugal and saving monies. Quite the opposite is happening. They make frequent non-productive trips back to home base (Bengal), don't do much in terms of actual reforms, are sidetracked by trivial nonsense and lose the big picture in the bargain. When Railways is leaking thousand of crores in corruption and inefficiency what is the point of saving a few Rs here and there. Most of the Railways stations are crumbling, just look at the decrepit platforms in many stations around India. Same bombed out look everywhere. Trains are hopelessly slow and cost the economy crores every day in efficiency. Just imagine doubling the average speed and ergo shaving of half the time. More productive work can be accomplished. Instead we have trains that look worse than any 3rd world country and run as slow as molasses. The whole system needs to be thoroughly revamped, the railway board ought be given a swift kick in the rear and railway employees need be shown a big danda to get to work.

The whole system needs to be thoroughly revamped, the railway board ought be given a swift kick in the rear and railway employees need be shown a big danda to get to work.

About a million times easier said than done ...

Reforming the railways is the holy grail ... the scale of the problem is daunting ... no point blaming the Babus ... the Babus have a large component whose foreheads black and blue after banging them against the political wall for decades ...

recall the problems in privatizing one lousy airport in Delhi ... multiply that by a million and you will begin to appreciate the problem of even whispering about privatizing the railways ...

plus, there is the issue of monetizing the gigantic asset base of the railways ... do you know how to do it?

Believe it or not you are not the first to come up with such brainy ideas ...

so, before you throw out some puerile catch phrases like "reform railways" and "kick railway board in the butt", try to think a little ... and after you have thought, please post HOW to reform the railways ...

Thanks in advance.

About a million times easier said than done ...

Reforming the railways is the holy grail ... the scale of the problem is daunting ... no point blaming the Babus ... the Babus have a large component whose foreheads black and blue after banging them against the political wall for decades ...

recall the problems in privatizing one lousy airport in Delhi ... multiply that by a million and you will begin to appreciate the problem of even whispering about privatizing the railways ...

plus, there is the issue of monetizing the gigantic asset base of the railways ... do you know how to do it?

Believe it or not you are not the first to come up with such brainy ideas ...

so, before you throw out some puerile catch phrases like "reform railways" and "kick railway board in the butt", try to think a little ... and after you have thought, please post HOW to reform the railways ...

Thanks in advance.

Sure, what you say has a familiar ring to it. The issue is clearly not money. The amount of leakage in the system is huge and needs to be stemmed. But coming to your question, it is not some brainy idea that will get reforms kickstarted. It needs a dedicated Neta/Babu team. First fire Mamata as Railway Minister, she is a disaster. When Airports are done with their makeover and Air India is sufficiently restructured (I liked the gutsy call to fire 50 union types from Air India) then we can post Minister Praful Patel as the Railway Minister. He should be able to reform the railways pronto. No rocket science, all it takes is firm resolve and execution. Maybe transfer a few marquee cities into private hands and see what happens like the Airports in Delhi, Mumbai, HBad, Bluru. Maybe some entire railway divisions too. Call for joint partnership or private for all the ICF/Kapurthala railway workshops. Spain will be good or France, since the Europeans are facing some economic woes recently. Of course dust out all those babu proposals sitting in almirahs and implement a few good ones. Does not take much, just a resolve and firm execution.

To minimise casualties after derailments, the Railways are contemplating switching over from indigenous ICF coaches to German technology based LHB coaches in all mail and express trains as a safety measure.

LHB (Linke Holfmann Bush) coaches made of stainless steel have more inbuilt safety features as they can absorb shock and impact of derailment more effectively and as a result do not topple, thus reducing the loss of lives in case of accident, said a senior Rail Ministry official.


Read More @ Economic Times, Dated 30-May-2010 (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Mail/Express-trains-to-have-LHB-coaches-as-safety-measure-/articleshow/5990481.cms)

Read More @ Economic Times, Dated 30-May-2010 (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Mail/Express-trains-to-have-LHB-coaches-as-safety-measure-/articleshow/5990481.cms)

:lol: Well that's what happens when you have something made or desigened in india.
I'm glade thier atleast making the switch over now.

Sure, what you say has a familiar ring to it. The issue is clearly not money. The amount of leakage in the system is huge and needs to be stemmed. But coming to your question, it is not some brainy idea that will get reforms kickstarted. It needs a dedicated Neta/Babu team. First fire Mamata as Railway Minister, she is a disaster. When Airports are done with their makeover and Air India is sufficiently restructured (I liked the gutsy call to fire 50 union types from Air India) then we can post Minister Praful Patel as the Railway Minister. He should be able to reform the railways pronto. No rocket science, all it takes is firm resolve and execution. Maybe transfer a few marquee cities into private hands and see what happens like the Airports in Delhi, Mumbai, HBad, Bluru. Maybe some entire railway divisions too. Call for joint partnership or private for all the ICF/Kapurthala railway workshops. Spain will be good or France, since the Europeans are facing some economic woes recently. Of course dust out all those babu proposals sitting in almirahs and implement a few good ones. Does not take much, just a resolve and firm execution.

yup what you say is true

To Niranjan

dude privatisation is easy. Just privatise sections of it year after year

first the suburban services. Then Konkan railways and each sub section.



Privatisation is very easy step.

(a) Give the contract to step up bidding options and process to say somebody like the Rothchilds. If you have been keeping tack of the Indian 3G spectrum bid, it has been organised by the Rothchilds bank is was very very smooth netting $15 billion for the Government. So let Rothchild study the network and decide how the networks are divided.

(b) Let the bidding take place for each sub section of the railway. Clearly Konkan railways etc will bring in more money.

(c) Person with the highest bid wins.


The entire point of privatisation is that the government has to sit back and do nothing. The auction for the 3G spectrum tells us that.

However the only thing holding this back is political will. In privatisation the chances are high that cost of tickets will rise especially in the non profit making section of the railway system. The average Indian is not going to like this. As he would prefer a rough ride to a safe and comfortable one.....making the gov to privatised it lose votes.

May 31: Passenger comfort will scale new heights soon with the state planning to roll out air-conditioned double decker trains on the crowded Bengaluru-Mysore sector. The passenger train will cater to a large section of people who travel between the two cities every day.

SWR General Manager Kuldeep Chaturvedi told Deccan Chronicle: “We are thinking of introducing double decker trains on this sector. The train will be on the tracks once the prototype is ready.”

The Rail Coach Factory (RCF) in Kapurthala had rolled out the country’s first air-conditioned double-decker coach for trials on the Delhi-Moradabad section a few months ago. The new coach, green and yellow in colour, has all the features and comforts of a Shatabdi Express.

“Railway minister Mamata Banerjee had announced the introduction of AC double decker coaches in the last railway budget. RCF will start manufacturing the coaches once the trial run is successful. The futuristic high-speed stainless steel coaches will meet the heavy rush of commuters in high density corridors offering AC travel at a lower cost. The introduction of these trains will help to reduce traffic on the tracks,” Mr Kuldeep said.

About 128 passengers can travel on the double decker train as compared to 78 in Shatabdi chair cars, increasing the capacity by almost 70 per cent. The doubling of the Bengaluru-Mysore section will enable the introduction of additional short and long-destination trains, he said.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/bengaluru/double-seats-twice-fun-735

:banana::banana::banana::banana:

"The futuristic high-speed stainless steel coaches..."

What do they pay these guys to lie through their teeth to masses of unknowing citizens?

To Niranjan

dude privatisation is easy. Just privatise sections of it year after year

first the suburban services. Then Konkan railways and each sub section.



Privatisation is very easy step.

(a) Give the contract to step up bidding options and process to say somebody like the Rothchilds. If you have been keeping tack of the Indian 3G spectrum bid, it has been organised by the Rothchilds bank is was very very smooth netting $15 billion for the Government. So let Rothchild study the network and decide how the networks are divided.

(b) Let the bidding take place for each sub section of the railway. Clearly Konkan railways etc will bring in more money.

(c) Person with the highest bid wins.


The entire point of privatisation is that the government has to sit back and do nothing. The auction for the 3G spectrum tells us that.

However the only thing holding this back is political will. In privatisation the chances are high that cost of tickets will rise especially in the non profit making section of the railway system. The average Indian is not going to like this. As he would prefer a rough ride to a safe and comfortable one.....making the gov to privatised it lose votes.

boss, yuou have made it easy by eliminating the most important factor: the employees ...

yes, if you reduce the railways to only hardware, it is easy ... unfortunately, reality is a bit more complicated ...

like Barry says above, "start by firing Mamta" ... LOL ... that will lead to government collapse ...

let's only discuss serious ideas ... :)

like Barry says above, "start by firing Mamta" ... LOL ... that will lead to government collapse ...

let's only discuss serious ideas ... :)

Saar, Mamta firing is limited to Railways not Govt. She can continue as the grand poohbah of some other ministry (Coal, or Chief Kangress coordinator for West Bengal).

Like you said "How to reform the Railways": Ich and I believe that the Railways is in a hopeless situation to be reformed from within. There is too much in-built inertia and the way people think about railway services is in the bygone era. Railway Employees is not the issue, modern railway service in the 21st century is the issue. Only a fresh perspective, i.e. private handling of the whole problem can solve the issue. Most of the employees will end up in private companies. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, who is trying his darnest to reform Air India, is facing enormous hurdles. The entrenched bureaucracy and unions are a major bugaboo to any reforms. Eventually Air India needs to be handed over to either a Jet Airways or Kingfisher, it is quite hopeless trying to bring reform to a staid organization. Praful should be credited with merging Air India and Indian Airlines - now there is one big airline company to be reformed instead of two. Railways eventually will go the private route. I like a healthy competition amongst railway divisions. The Govt needs to appoint a controller/regulator for transportation like they have with Telecom - TRAI. The private operators can bid for the lucrative freight business and as a stipulation of business they provide tiered service on the passenger side. Maybe they have to service all the routes where freight is operated.

Also, before folks start comparing railways to puny asset classes like 3G auction (12-13B$), please try to make some estimates ... for example, just try to estimate the value of land holdings of railways ... start with a metro city, Mumbai or Delhi ... that alone will make 3G look like peanuts ...

tell me, who is going to *buy* the railways? Rothschild may have the moolah ... do you want to sell to them?

All the business houses of India combined may not be able to purchase even one large division of the railways ...

this has been one of the stumbling blocks (talk of this has been around since the 80s) ... there is no simple model of how to raise capital ... which is why small steps like leasing of railway lands are being taken ...

also, breaking up into pieces will have its own issues ... have you ever wondered how hand-over of trains between division boundaries is so smooth? It is because there is a larger organization that does not allow divisions to set their own traffic priorities ...

In the US Amtrak trains operate on tracks that they don't own ... this means that they become lowest priorities on such tracks ... they have to stop and let freight trains pass because the operators have given higher priority to their own freight ...

a private operator in India will soon realize that passenger traffic is a waste of time and give priority to frieight only ...

final question ... if you think private corporations in India are dying to get into the railway business how come they are not proposing factories for building railway equipment? ... why do they need the government's nod?

Saar, Mamta firing is limited to Railways not Govt. She can continue as the grand poohbah of some other ministry (Coal, or Chief Kangress coordinator for West Bengal).

have you asked Mamta-ji? Or, making a guess on her behalf? She *demanded* railways ministry as a pre-condition to joining the coalition govt.

Vivek Sahai is new Rly Board chairman
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Senior railway official Vivek Sahai on Monday took over as chairman of the Railway Board.

Sahai, who earned accolades for deftly handling the suburban train operations in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, has assumed charge at a time when the railways is facing stiff challenges from Naxalites and serious terror threats.

Sahai, an Indian Railway Traffic Service officer who was member (traffic) in the board, has taken up the top job from S S Khurana.

His appointment as the CRB would be crucial in the execution of several high profile projects, including the high speed corridor and kicking off the freight corridor projects.

have you asked Mamta-ji? Or, making a guess on her behalf? She *demanded* railways ministry as a pre-condition to joining the coalition govt.

She should voluntary quit the post, her continued presence is damaging the nation and its progress. MMS/Kangress/Mamata need to negotiate some other grand poohbah post.

The railways is trapped in a sinister time warp, old crumbling railway stations, trains that are in the byegone era in terms of design, comfort, speed, maintenance, etc. Signaling needs a massive upgrade. Rationalization of routes and destinations is needed. The staff bloat and giveaways need to be stemmed. Corruption and massive revenue leaks need to be plugged. Only private ownership can solve these issues. Using cliches like too big to be managed, 100-1000x Airline problems and other well worn excuses does not cut it anymore. Any big problem can be broken down to smaller ones and can be tackled quickly. Just a will/resolve and execution plan.

Using cliches like too big to be managed, 100-1000x Airline problems and other well worn excuses does not cut it anymore.

yes sir, sorry sir, we will fire Mamata immediately. And then we will have shooper-phaasht express that will travel from Dilli to Mumbai in 2 hours. Jai Ho! Let's go!! No cliches, sir! No excuses, sir! Let's just privatize mamta-ji also. maybe Ambani can buy her for $0.5B.

Sahai, who earned accolades for deftly handling the suburban train operations in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, has assumed charge at a time when the railways is facing stiff challenges from Naxalites and serious terror threats.


let's avoid these cliches like service record. He is just a useless babu who deserves a kick in the butt from Barry. Privatize the railways and maoists will disappear. maybe Ambani can buy maoists for $1B.

^^
Niranjan, you don't have to get personal about this. Go ahead and tell us how you propose to improve the railways. There is no single answer given constraints of a democracy.

However the Indian railway service is lagging behind severely. Mumbai railways is a disaster and the people of Mumbai have been clamoring for autonomy. Same is true in many parts of India. ICF/Kapurthala are ancient, union infested workplace. The average Indian railway coach looks like a museum piece. I recently saw the Shatabdi express in Bluru and I was very disappointed. The train was filthy on the exterior and the metal work on the outside looked like a welding/tinkering shop amateur experiment. You don't have to compare India with the say the US, other smaller nations around the globe have better railway station infrastructure and railway trains than India.

Also, before folks start comparing railways to puny asset classes like 3G auction (12-13B$), please try to make some estimates ... for example, just try to estimate the value of land holdings of railways ... start with a metro city, Mumbai or Delhi ... that alone will make 3G look like peanuts ...

tell me, who is going to *buy* the railways? Rothschild may have the moolah ... do you want to sell to them?

All the business houses of India combined may not be able to purchase even one large division of the railways ...

this has been one of the stumbling blocks (talk of this has been around since the 80s) ... there is no simple model of how to raise capital ... which is why small steps like leasing of railway lands are being taken ...

also, breaking up into pieces will have its own issues ... have you ever wondered how hand-over of trains between division boundaries is so smooth? It is because there is a larger organization that does not allow divisions to set their own traffic priorities ...

In the US Amtrak trains operate on tracks that they don't own ... this means that they become lowest priorities on such tracks ... they have to stop and let freight trains pass because the operators have given higher priority to their own freight ...

a private operator in India will soon realize that passenger traffic is a waste of time and give priority to frieight only ...

final question ... if you think private corporations in India are dying to get into the railway business how come they are not proposing factories for building railway equipment? ... why do they need the government's nod?


its the process through dude. Its a very much similar process. thats how usually global auctions of very big enterprises are carried out. Its a typical case of Japan post which was broken up into many pieces in similar fashion.

now about the employees , yes your right they will be the biggest hurdle in this. As I already mentioned before you need to spend a lot of political capital to push this through.

However IR is inefficiently run. There is a good chance that they will need the similar number of employees only need to redeploy them to more critical areas and iron out many bottle necks simply to make a profit. You and me dont really know the total man power needed by IR. Maybe what privatisation will do rather than firing all the employees is shake them into doing their job on time and efficiently.

Plus there are various ways of reducing the wage bill. The Indian state banks have tried this to great effect like State bank of India which offered many voluntary retirement schemes. So maybe the private sector will just offer a VRS and not replace the people by adding new jobs. A lot of employees in IR are above 50.

Plus there is nothing to say that only business houses in India can bid for this. It can be a consortium of foreign and Indian based companies in partnership. Plus i really dont believe what your saying on the private cos not being able to buy IR. The market cap of companies like the Reliance consortium and the TATAs are way too big than the Indian railways. They can easily purchase one section atleast if there is a will. What makes you thing the private cos dont own land of their own?

As things stand overall the railways are just about making a profit. That too with freight. That tells me that its not that big an asset or org for the Indian private cos. Though the issue has been around from the 80s we today have the proper private sector to deliver the goods better than the public sector. Our private companies are buying up marquee brands abroad. The private sector in india has evolved rapidly.

***************************************************************************************************************


Why dont we first start out small and hand over the suburban services in major cities to the private orgs and see how it goes over a period of say 5 years? If that is a total failure then we will know for sure privitisation is not the solution. If it works then move to the next piece.

Your point about inter zonal train services is also true. But as the current system stands we have a conflict between different divisions of IR. So its not something which is not there on the current network. IR too is divided into many different zones each of which have petty ego minded babus who rather than make money or be corrupt sort of see it as their means to be self important in life.

Source (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100603/jsp/bengal/story_12517106.jsp)
Darjeeling, June 2: Employees of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway have threatened to start an agitation over the Northeast Frontier Railway’s reported move to open a camp office for the toy train in Siliguri.

The authorities, however, said such DHR offices already existed in the plains.

The DHR is supposed to function from the Elysia Building in Kurseong which was its headquarters before 1948. It was renovated for about Rs 80 lakh in 2006 to house the director’s office. But till date the office is not fully functional.

“It has come to the notice of our union that plans have been mooted for opening a camp office of the DHR in Siliguri. The opening of the office will lead to a situation where the Elysia Building, which was envisaged to be the DHR headquarters, will become redundant and will be permanently reduced to a museum,” said Anand Rai, the Kurseong branch secretary of the Intuc-affiliated NF Railway Employees’ Union.

The railways’ decision to revive the Elysia Buildling was aimed to provide greater autonomy to the DHR in recognition of its World Heritage status. In 1999, the Unesco had accorded the status to the toy train, making the DHR the first railway system in India to be awarded such a status.

Even though the railways’ long-term plan was to go in for structural changes and to create a separate unit for the DHR, an “adapted management plan” for the toy train had been mooted in 2005-06 to be supervised through the Katihar division.

According to the plan, a senior manager was to be placed in Kurseong, who would be supported by a mechanical and a civil engineer.

The arrangement was aimed at providing more autonomy at the local level. Later, the railways made a change in its plan and instead decided to appoint a director for the DHR.

The employees’ union has sought an appointment with the DHR authorities on June 4. “If a solution is not arrived at during that meeting, we will decide on our next course of agitation, which could even mean complete closure of the DHR offices,” a source in the union said.

The union members have managed to whip up emotion in the hills. “We cannot tolerate such a retrograde step, which is anti-hills and stands in violation of the original plan. We request the officials not to take any step which may ignite the regional passion in an already volatile situation in the hills,” said Rai.

P.P. Roy, the DHR director, said over the phone from Dehra Dun: “This is nothing new. There are offices of the DHR already in Siliguri and New Jalpaiguri. I also have my office at the Elysia Building. Since there are frequent strikes in the hills, a situation in which the entire DHR comes to a halt cannot be allowed. This is why there are offices in the plains.”

^^
Niranjan, you don't have to get personal about this. Go ahead and tell us how you propose to improve the railways. There is no single answer given constraints of a democracy.

nothing personal, Barry-ji ... I am debating at the level so eloquently initiated by you thusly: "Railway Board needs a kick in the butt" ...

I am only striving to keep up with your high standards ... :)

Ichimaru,

I have several comments that I will make when I have more time. For the moment, this is a stumbling block:


Plus i really dont believe what your saying on the private cos not being able to buy IR. The market cap of companies like the Reliance consortium and the TATAs are way too big than the Indian railways. They can easily purchase one section atleast if there is a will. What makes you thing the private cos dont own land of their own?

It is not about belief ... I invited you to make your own estimate ... instead you throw out a claim like "Tata'a market cap is bigger than Railways" ...

Firstly, Railways have no market cap ...

Secondly, it is about asset base ... what is your estimate of the asset base of the Railways ...

All those who want toe Privatize, Privatize in a rush, do us a simple favor ...

Please establish a SALE PRICE ... do it for whatever sector, suburban or division or whatever you please ...

after this exercise you may begin to appreciate the problems the Babus have faced ... perhaps, some of you will volunteer to get yourselves kicked in the butt, eh? :)

oh, one more thing ... keep in mind that a private investor expects a reasonable ROI ... shall we say 6%? ... that is quite low, but if you insist, we can make it 4% ...

Now, if you plan to sell some piece of the railways, make sure that the piece in question generates profit at the level of 4% of the sale price that you have established ...

this is a useful exercise for the very knowledgeable folks on SSC ... much more worth it than endless pages of cussing IR ...

nothing personal, Barry-ji ... I am debating at the level so eloquently initiated by you thusly: "Railway Board needs a kick in the butt" ...

I am only striving to keep up with your high standards ... :)

You don't need to keep up with such high standards...Really. The IR board is no saintly organization. One of the finance person in the board was fudging numbers, euphemism for corruption. There might be a few good people, some that you know perhaps.. However the board has not done much in the past few decades to pull up the Railways from its dismal performance especially on the passenger side. We still have ancient railway stations and railway trains. The railways leakage and corruption is legendary. Most of the division GMs are useless, not due to entirely their fault, since they have very little leeway in managing unions and lazy employees. A few have taken it upon themselves to get some semblence of order and propriety in operations. However the net effect has been quite tardy. Certainly the people of India are looking at the end results and care two hoots about how IR is composed and which babus are in charge. Ya the Neta Babu combine needs to take the blame for the end results. Somethings need change. We can argue about how to go about it but you and I can agree that change is needed.

Ichimaru,

I have several comments that I will make when I have more time. For the moment, this is a stumbling block:



It is not about belief ... I invited you to make your own estimate ... instead you throw out a claim like "Tata'a market cap is bigger than Railways" ...

Firstly, Railways have no market cap ...

Secondly, it is about asset base ... what is your estimate of the asset base of the Railways ...

All those who want toe Privatize, Privatize in a rush, do us a simple favor ...

Please establish a SALE PRICE ... do it for whatever sector, suburban or division or whatever you please ...

after this exercise you may begin to appreciate the problems the Babus have faced ... perhaps, some of you will volunteer to get yourselves kicked in the butt, eh? :)

sure take your time brother. I accept that even my approach may have flaws in it. As i said I am not a de merger expert(as that person would break sections of the railways) so it would not be (a) right for me to make an estimate as I am not an expert on this issue. (b) I can only make vague points and not get into too much detail as we are debating on a free open source yet private site not a forum for railway experts.

From what I know, the vast majority of trips on the railways are within the cities. So we can first strive to improve the day to day travels of the people.


Well I would like to ask you as a question,

do you believe that the private cos (both india and foreign in partnership with India) would;

(a) be able to afford the purchase suburban operations of IR in cities like Mumbai MMR Kolkata , Delhi NCR and Chennai

(b) able to generate a profit from them. I do know Mumbai suburban is operating already at a profit. No idea about rate of return or other cities.

railways doesnt need to sell off all its assets, i.e. land and buildings, to a private operator to ensure better service

not that i am for the private sector providing rail services. most successful rail companies are publicly owned since they can make long term investments. but something needs to be done about IR. no amount of excuses can cover up their woeful performance in all areas

but something needs to be done about IR. no amount of excuses can cover up their woeful performance in all areas

IR reflects India and its politics ... yes, something needs to be done ... in effect, something needs to be done about INDIA ... maybe break it up into pieces and sell it off?

seeing as no one wants to discuss HOW to privatize IR, this is just wishful thinking ... reality is that it ain't gonna happen ... ample opportunity for perpetual whining.

Cheers all.

what would you do to IR? or do you just believe it should continue as it is?

Well I would like to ask you as a question,

do you believe that the private cos (both india and foreign in partnership with India) would;

(a) be able to afford the purchase suburban operations of IR in cities like Mumbai MMR Kolkata , Delhi NCR and Chennai

(b) able to generate a profit from them. I do know Mumbai suburban is operating already at a profit. No idea about rate of return or other cities.

For example ... the most I think that someone like Ambani can do is to LEASE tracks and land from IR, upgrade the stations and operate trains on the suburban lines of Mumbai. Yes, this can be made profitable as well ...

However, the devil is in the details ... let's figure out the cost for leasing ... in simple terms, IR should make it equal to whatever profit they are deriving from the line in order to make it cost neutral ... then figure the cost/financing of the upgrades ...

[on top of that, add the ghoos that Mantri-ji etc would demand]

finally, add the ROI for Ambani-ji ...

the revenue has to be structured to match this target ... I believe it can be done without raising ticket prices too much ...

however, I doubt that all the jobs will be maintained ... Railway Unions will immediately declare a strike ... everyone would demand to be absorbed in IR at some other position etc etc ... its this last thing that everyone worries about ...

in that sense, IR problem is India problem ... the culture of "sarkari naukari" which is secure until kingdom come is holding India back ... no point singling out IR for this mess ...

what would you do to IR? or do you just believe it should continue as it is?

boss, even if I were chairman of railway board, I wouldn't be able to do didley squat ...

I'll give an example close to home ... someone I know very well was appointed to examine locomotive purchases for IR ... he spent 2 years researching the worldwide market, studied the technologies, wrote a thick bloody report and made recommendations ...

Mantri-ji bought locos from the company that gave the biggest kickback ...

we are like that only.

I like this idea. Could we maybe employ railway workers under Reliance during this time then?

For example ... the most I think that someone like Ambani can do is to LEASE tracks and land from IR, upgrade the stations and operate trains on the suburban lines of Mumbai. Yes, this can be made profitable as well ...

However, the devil is in the details ... let's figure out the cost for leasing ... in simple terms, IR should make it equal to whatever profit they are deriving from the line in order to make it cost neutral ... then figure the cost/financing of the upgrades ...

[on top of that, add the ghoos that Mantri-ji etc would demand]

finally, add the ROI for Ambani-ji ...

the revenue has to be structured to match this target ... I believe it can be done without raising ticket prices too much ...

however, I doubt that all the jobs will be maintained ... Railway Unions will immediately declare a strike ... everyone would demand to be absorbed in IR at some other position etc etc ... its this last thing that everyone worries about ...

in that sense, IR problem is India problem ... the culture of "sarkari naukari" which is secure until kingdom come is holding India back ... no point singling out IR for this mess ...


well all i want is a means to the end. Lease the tracks of IR for a set period to the private players and then let them run the services. As a commuter i could not care less as long as I get a better ride for a value for money we if gov or private.

the rest you are suggesting obviously IR sets the benchmark in bidding and bids come in.

Mumbai railways for eg need a hell of a lot of upgrades to make them run smoothly. So they will just need to redeploy staff to get the upgrades done.

boss, even if I were chairman of railway board, I wouldn't be able to do didley squat ...

I'll give an example close to home ... someone I know very well was appointed to examine locomotive purchases for IR ... he spent 2 years researching the worldwide market, studied the technologies, wrote a thick bloody report and made recommendations ...

Mantri-ji bought locos from the company that gave the biggest kickback ...

we are like that only.

yes, i know thats the case now. but you have no real solutions to offer then?

if everyone was the same we would not see any kind of progress in this country. forget the delhi metro, konkan railways, GQ, MPE, etc

its easy to be a cynic and laugh at everyone for wanting to change things

its easy to be a cynic and laugh at everyone for wanting to change things

it is equally easy to jump on the guy pointing out reality ... my apologies for overlooking the tome of "real solutions" that you have posted ... chill out and post something constructive ...

So they will just need to redeploy staff to get the upgrades done.

boss, we are back to what I said at the beginning of this exchange ... the most important criterion is the staff ... which makes it a political problem, not technical ... railway board etc don't do politics ...

whichever Neta-ji can make it happen, more power to him/her ... I am not holding my breath ...

In India, there are a wide variety of things that make eminent sense and need to get done ... yet, they are ignored by successive governments ...

folks can jump on me for pointing out the reality and congratulate themselves for wishful thinking ... but then what "excuses" they have in terms of explaining the countless missed opportunities?

boss, we are back to what I said at the beginning of this exchange ... the most important criterion is the staff ... which makes it a political problem, not technical ... railway board etc don't do politics ...

whichever Neta-ji can make it happen, more power to him/her ... I am not holding my breath ...


Yes, leadership is one component of the problem. The board and employee problems are not mere politics. Half the issue is that people who are in position/responsibility do not do their jobs properly. I am sure on paper we have umpteen employees to take care of maintenance. For example, trains need to be washed and cleaned according to a schedule. Is this followed? That is not a politic problem. Some one did not do their job and the supervisor is absent or does not care. The Railway Board is empowered to do their job and enforce the same. I don't believe any politician would say don't do your responsibilities or your job. Similarly there is a chief designer in IR at ICF whose responsibility is to design a modern coach. He is empowered to do whatever it takes. No one is telling him to design soviet era coaches.

For example, trains need to be washed and cleaned according to a schedule. Is this followed? That is not a politic problem.

are bade bhai, when did I say that EVRYTHING is a political problem ... we are talking about privatization, aren't we?

if it makes you happy, I will simply agree with you that IR employees are Nikammah Lazy BumF*ucks, unlike everyone else in India who is an Industrious Hardworking Overachiever ... whatever it takes, boss ... may I be excused?

boss, we are back to what I said at the beginning of this exchange ... the most important criterion is the staff ... which makes it a political problem, not technical ... railway board etc don't do politics ...

whichever Neta-ji can make it happen, more power to him/her ... I am not holding my breath ...

In India, there are a wide variety of things that make eminent sense and need to get done ... yet, they are ignored by successive governments ...

folks can jump on me for pointing out the reality and congratulate themselves for wishful thinking ... but then what "excuses" they have in terms of explaining the countless missed opportunities?


its really not an issue of congratulations. Its just an issue for better service. I am personally aware that even after privatisation there will be many hurdles.

But my point is unless we go for it or try it in small stages how will we know how things turn out? You might well be right on the workers striking and the entire project. I am not suggesting for a second that privitisation will work 100%.

Experimentation with the smaller suburban section by trying something new is not political suicide as it affects a small section of Indian society politically.

It does not change the profit of the railways as freight which makes bulk of the profit will still be with them. So they can channel that to expand the network in the hinterlands.

I did a search and only Bangalore Hyderabad Chennai Delhi Kolkata and Delhi have a big suburban network./commuter rail network.

Surely we need to try? If we dont try anything whats the point?

So start small and then see how it goes. Some 60-70% of people use IR trains on these suburban railway routes. so if it works majority of the people will benefit.

+1

Surely we need to try? If we dont try anything whats the point?


I agree with you completely with the NEED to try ... at the same time I am pessimistic that anyone will try ... boss, I have been convinced about the need to try for roughly 4 decades ... when should I stop holding my breath? ... I am turning black and blue ... :)

I agree with you completely with the NEED to try ... at the same time I am pessimistic that anyone will try ... boss, I have been convinced about the need to try for roughly 4 decades ... when should I stop holding my breath? ... I am turning black and blue ... :)

lol well

If i told you in the year 2000 about how cheap mobile phone charges and tariffs would be in 2010 I think you and most Indians (including me) would have just laughed. I remember my dad used to use his mobile phone back then for missed calls. He used to get a missed call. He would know who was calling based on the number then quickly hang up and then call from the landline or pay phone nearby cause it was much cheaper.(one decade ago) Today I can speak non stop for some ridiculous 1 paisa per min with a set amount of money paid in per month.(even thats really low amount)

Who knows, thats all I will say. Who knows....India is a funny nation. Now clearly I realise that changing the railways is a mammoth task compared to the telecom network and will take decades to bring to some sort of decent standard. Maybe I am still young so i can dream.

Tis Not just the Telecom sector reform that has produced miracles. We see a spurt in quality road building, the Golden Quad kicked off the mania. Major Gen Kanduri the then Neta in charge did a wonderful job. Roads are built by private firms that bid the job. They brought modern methods of road laying, standardized construction rules with good deep foundations and mechanized road laying equipment. And now Indians get to ride on well laid 2+ lane segregated highways throughout the country (for the most part).

Airlines is another story that I thought would not happen in my lifetime, yet Delhi, Mumbai, Bluru and HBad are great international airports. Tier II & Tier III cities are getting well designed modern airports. Who would have thought such a thing could happen with the Govt of India. Sometimes miracles are possible with the right Neta/Babu combine.

Delhi Metro is another shining example of a Babu who took charge and blazed a trail. He managed to produce a stellar example of efficiency, honesty and sound management. Who would have thought that this could happen with a Babu. Yes miracles can happen if the right people are appointed and given a mandate.

Yet the Railways is in some bygone era, no movement to modernize, the same old crappy coaches/trains every year with the Netas in robotic fashion announcing more trains and more social nonsense. Unigage project has been stretched for ages, electrification is yet to be completed, local suburb traffic is overflowing with filthy stations and decrepit trains that deserve to be in museums. The current Neta is a disaster with very little vision or administrative skills. Indian people are tired of these nitwits in charge when the country is teaming with talent and bright young people with a can do attitude.

Can we all agree on privatizing station upkeep and maintenance ? Kinda like the airports. The private party is free to raise dough from advertising and other revenue sources in exchange for maintaining the station. I'd like to see us start with that. Next, maybe I'd like the Railways to get out of the business of making trains.

I'd like a Govt. entity to own the railway lines and associated infrastructure. I'm not in favor of 100% privatization.

Can we all agree on privatizing station upkeep and maintenance ? Kinda like the airports. The private party is free to raise dough from advertising and other revenue sources in exchange for maintaining the station. I'd like to see us start with that. Next, maybe I'd like the Railways to get out of the business of making trains.

I'd like a Govt. entity to own the railway lines and associated infrastructure. I'm not in favor of 100% privatization.

ofcourse, stuff like cleaning and producing trains and tracks etc can certainly be given to private contractors.

anything but the current status quo

rather than 100% private you can even have a public private partnership on similar lines to the airports.

I even suggested floating the Railways on the Indian stock market to see for 49% of the company to raise capital and which will give us a real value of the railways.


I personally dont mind at all being bombarded by advertising if the private sector steps in as a clean and efficient way of providing transport.


Now I dont use trains for long range travel, I use an airline. So for me Mumbai suburban is an issue of priority.

At present the stations are dirty. Announcement speakers break up so you cant understand a thing. The frequency in rush hour is a lot to be desired from. Now i am a realist. I know that doors just cannot be shut in Mumbai suburban trains and the rush will always be there. But there are many small things which can be done to really lift the standard of travel. I hope the private sector can do that. Atleast get the small things working efficiently.

Chinese non-stop train concept

pn84drthLYg

thats awesome. just amazing.

non stop train

^^ this is interesting. But just imagine: because of erratic Indian rail services, a non stop train might have to wait eternally for the arrival of the next train! especially in Delhi in winter. ha ha

ofcourse, stuff like cleaning and producing trains and tracks etc can certainly be given to private contractors.

anything but the current status quo

rather than 100% private you can even have a public private partnership on similar lines to the airports.

I even suggested floating the Railways on the Indian stock market to see for 49% of the company to raise capital and which will give us a real value of the railways.


I personally dont mind at all being bombarded by advertising if the private sector steps in as a clean and efficient way of providing transport.


Now I dont use trains for long range travel, I use an airline. So for me Mumbai suburban is an issue of priority.

At present the stations are dirty. Announcement speakers break up so you cant understand a thing. The frequency in rush hour is a lot to be desired from. Now i am a realist. I know that doors just cannot be shut in Mumbai suburban trains and the rush will always be there. But there are many small things which can be done to really lift the standard of travel. I hope the private sector can do that. Atleast get the small things working efficiently.

IMHO any train service with dedicated tracks is theoretically amenable to privatization (of operation). For the Mumbai suburban to get to that stage, unfortunately the MUTP has to be completed. If IR and the private entity has to share lines, thats a problematic scenario.

IMHO any train service with dedicated tracks is theoretically amenable to privatization (of operation). For the Mumbai suburban to get to that stage, unfortunately the MUTP has to be completed. If IR and the private entity has to share lines, thats a problematic scenario.

but what if say

the IR runs the trains.

but the private sector runs the stations, to keep them clean and expand or renovate them as needed.(like say shade for all platforms). From my personal travels, I think sometimes the stations themselves are part of the problem. Maybe people crossing the tracks can be stopped by private station management? Better class of shops etc? Better formation of lines so people can get off and on the trains easily? In return put as many adverts as you want. Get rent from the shops and a certain % of the ticket sales.


do you think any private sector company will bid for it? As there is no conflict of interest with IR. They can still maintain their monopoly and people can potentially get better service as a result of increased ticket counters (all of whom are open) better display screens for timings with coridniation with BEST (bus services) outside the station, more places to sit. Less squatters, cleaner surroundings and aesthetics.

So why not let IR just concentrate on running the trains. (ie similar to what your suggesting regarding washing and production of trains)

but what if say

the IR runs the trains.

but the private sector runs the stations, to keep them clean and expand or renovate them as needed.(like say shade for all platforms). From my personal travels, I think sometimes the stations themselves are part of the problem. Maybe people crossing the tracks can be stopped by private station management? Better class of shops etc? Better formation of lines so people can get off and on the trains easily? In return put as many adverts as you want. Get rent from the shops and a certain % of the ticket sales.


do you think any private sector company will bid for it? As there is no conflict of interest with IR. They can still maintain their monopoly and people can potentially get better service as a result of increased ticket counters (all of whom are open) better display screens for timings with coridniation with BEST (bus services) outside the station, more places to sit. Less squatters, cleaner surroundings and aesthetics.

So why not let IR just concentrate on running the trains. (ie similar to what your suggesting regarding washing and production of trains)

Absolutely. Step 1, see if the private sector will operate stations. The capital investment shouldn't be that prohibitive either.

But from the Mumbai suburban perspective, you need someone else (private sector) to run the trains as well. I think that can only be accomplished with exclusivity of lines IMHO.

Absolutely. Step 1, see if the private sector will operate stations. The capital investment shouldn't be that prohibitive either.

But from the Mumbai suburban perspective, you need someone else (private sector) to run the trains as well. I think that can only be accomplished with exclusivity of lines IMHO.

hmm surely cant the Harbour line be made private ? I do believe it only runs suburban trains

for central we will need to complete the Kurla to CST and Thane to Diva tracks for lines 5 and 6 for there to be exclusive lines.

IMHO, Enforcing ticket purchase by controlling access to the platform area is one thing that could definitely get more money. I remember reading alarming statistics of ticketless travellers - especially during peak hours.

Of course for this to work 100% successfully you would need

- better station management starting with enclosing stations physically so that they can only be approached through turnstiles.

- Fencing tracks off to prevent people boarding/disembarking trains at signals etc(easier said than done)

- Something similar to SATIS implented in Thane can actually increase area available for shops etc while still keeping them organized.

Ticket revenues would increase many fold offsetting some of the cost.

This would be an ideal way for private players to get involved. Advertising streams are immense

- Back of the tickets
- Trains (already exist)
- Stations
- Commercial establishments in stations (this is a huge untapped opportunity). The present set of railway canteens are so crappy....

if the private sector will operate stations. The capital investment shouldn't be that prohibitive either.


Actually, most railway require only cosmetic changes. The physical infra/land is already there. They need to resurface the platforms with better modern material, anti-skid edges and so forth. The roofs need to be replaced and the rooms, bathrooms etc updated. Not much if you have a regimented system and private operators are involved. this would stimulate local economies by employing people to do the makeover and is a win-win proposition. Lots of young people graduated from design schools, civil engineering and architecture schools can be employed. They can bring a fresh perspective and modern designs. Start with a division and replicate it all throughout India. This activity can be complete in say 3yrs. The investment can payoff over time if we have Ich's idea of ads in railway stations. Some additional revenues from modern eating stalls, maybe a shop for local souveniers.

BTW I like that out-of-the-box thinking displayed by the Chinese to improved train speeds!

IMHO, Enforcing ticket purchase by controlling access to the platform area is one thing that could definitely get more money. I remember reading alarming statistics of ticketless travellers - especially during peak hours.

Well, we have the system of platform tickets, but first thing to do is to make them AVAILABLE.

Recently I stood 35 minutes in queue to buy an Rs 2 platform ticket, so that I can accompany my nephew to the platform and make sure that he boards the correct coach/seat. Meanwhile, people were going freely in and out of the gate. Talk about ass backward systems!

The dot matrix printers that print the tix is the biggest joke. It takes upto 30 seconds to print one ticket. In the days of the card ticket, one could issue at least 5 of them by that time.

Well, we have the system of platform tickets, but first thing to do is to make them AVAILABLE.

Recently I stood 35 minutes in queue to buy an Rs 2 platform ticket, so that I can accompany my nephew to the platform and make sure that he boards the correct coach/seat. Meanwhile, people were going freely in and out of the gate. Talk about ass backward systems!

The dot matrix printers that print the tix is the biggest joke. It takes upto 30 seconds to print one ticket. In the days of the card ticket, one could issue at least 5 of them by that time.

which is what i mean by station management. More ticket counters etc so you dont have to stand for 35 min for a ticket.

Private freight terminal, special freight train operator for scheme floated (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Private-freight-terminal-special-freight-train-operator-for-scheme-floated/articleshow/6013679.cms)

NEW DELHI: The Railways will now allow private players to build railway tracks and earn revenue from freight charges. It will also permit private
operators to run special freight trains for a number of commodities such as chemicals and petrochemicals, fertiliser, cement, fly ash, molasses , edible oil and special steel products.

The two schemes—the Private Freight Terminal (PFT) and the Special Freight Train Operator Scheme (SFTO) —were notified by the railways on Friday.

^^ this is interesting. But just imagine: because of erratic Indian rail services, a non stop train might have to wait eternally for the arrival of the next train! especially in Delhi in winter. ha ha

I doubt that the chinese braniacs who produced that cartoon video spent any time calculating the forces on the passengers as they are jerked from rest to 300 kmph ... LOL

plus, I didn't see them address the braking system in the decoupling process ... how does the passenger pod come to rest?

Private freight terminal, special freight train operator for scheme floated (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Private-freight-terminal-special-freight-train-operator-for-scheme-floated/articleshow/6013679.cms)

It's almost as if they're following us :D

its really not an issue of congratulations. Its just an issue for better service. I am personally aware that even after privatisation there will be many hurdles.

But my point is unless we go for it or try it in small stages how will we know how things turn out? You might well be right on the workers striking and the entire project. I am not suggesting for a second that privitisation will work 100%.

Experimentation with the smaller suburban section by trying something new is not political suicide as it affects a small section of Indian society politically.

It does not change the profit of the railways as freight which makes bulk of the profit will still be with them. So they can channel that to expand the network in the hinterlands.

I did a search and only Bangalore Hyderabad Chennai Delhi Kolkata and Delhi have a big suburban network./commuter rail network.

Surely we need to try? If we dont try anything whats the point?

So start small and then see how it goes. Some 60-70% of people use IR trains on these suburban railway routes. so if it works majority of the people will benefit.

B'lore doesn't have a commuter rail network while the other cities that you mentioned including Mumbai has it. Hyd's commuter rail network was lauched just in 2004.

I found an interesting news item posted by Bombay2Calcutta in the Mumabi thread:

There will be no change in seating arrangement in the new suburban local trains expected under the second phase of the Rs 5,300 crore Mumbai Urban Transport project.

While adopting best practices from railways across the world for the city’s new trains, the railways have refused to adopt longitudinal seating fearing a public backlash.

"The last time WR changed the seating arrangement and set up longitudinal seats (parallel to the length of the train as they exist in Delhi) in a local train on an experimental basis, some commuters had moved the court and it became a complicated process. We will not change the seating pattern," a top railway official.

So, the Railways can't even change the seating arrangement on their own ... :lol: ... the matter is taken to court ... LOL

and folks talk about Privatization ... :ohno: ... I can imagine thousands of petitions and what-nots holding up the process ...

As I said before, the problem is not IR ... the problem is India ... IR reflects Indian mindset ... we are like that only ... :bash:

People's Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) leader Sameer Mahato, a key accused in the May 28 Jnaneswari Express disaster, was arrested by the West Bengal police on Tuesday.

Mahato is scheduled to be produced before a Jhargram court later in the day today.

Samir Mahato was part of the team that removed the pandrol clips from the track.

The derailment of the Howrah-Kurla train in Midanpore on May 28 in which 148 passengers were killed has been blamed on Maoists.

The Centre announced a CBI inquiry on June 2, the day when Trinamool Congress won a landslide victory in the municipal elections in West Bengal.

The decision was taken as the incident had taken place on railway property and in such cases the concurrence of the state government was not required, it was said. TNN

This is couple months old but not sure if this was posted

Source (http://www.newkerala.com/news/fullnews-83238.html)


Thane, Apr 4 : Kalyan-Ahmednagar rail link, covering altogether 26 stations, is in queue, according to the Indian Railway sources.

A highly placed official of the Central Railway told this correspondent today that the new proposed railway link between Kalyan and Ahmednagar will be routed through Kalyan-Ambernath-Murbad-Otur and Ahmednagar and will have as many as 26 railway stations, and cover more than 250 kms.

The Thane District Railway Passengers Welfare Association has welcomed the decision of the Railways to go ahead with another project in the district that is of Kalyan-Ahmednagar. Association president Om Prakash Sharma termed the decision as a gift on the occasion of the 25 year celebration of the Association. He said that this indicated that the long drawn struggle by the association has not not gone in vain.

The railway official added that the tentative stations on this route will be Kalyan, Vithawadi, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath, Kambha Road, Apti, Patgaon, Murbad, Rav, Daheri, Milhe, Nagtar Cabin, Barivagarh Cabin, Deokuruvadi Cabin, Madh,, Junnar Road, Otur, Padar Wadi, Malvadi, Kateda Wadi, Shinde Wadi, Wasunde, Dhotre, Bhalvani, Hamidpur and Ahmednagar.

He said that the actual engineering field survey has been done in 2009 itself and preparations of estimates for the railway route was under process, he said.

The official stated that the detailed report will be submitted to the Railway Board by the end of the June 2010.

Source (http://www.ghodbunderroad.com/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=2603)
Om Prakash Sharma, the president of the Thane District Railway Passengers Association told Thane Plus that the demands of the association for the rail corridor are nearing materialisation. Sharma said, "The union railway ministry has accepted our demands and announced the conduction of technical study on the corridor in the next financial year." He claimed that he has got a letter from the Railway Board to the effect.
The connecting link: The Indian Railways had assured of providing 16 stations on the 116-kilometre long rail corridor instead of the 13 proposed almost a decade ago
The association president claimed, that the Indian Railways had assured of providing 16 stations on the 116-kilometre long rail corridor instead of the 13 proposed almost a decade ago. The corridor would connect Dahanu station on the Western Railway to Kalyan station on the Central Railway. The stations on the link would include Talasari, Vikramgarh,
Wada, Padgha and Khadavli routing to Kalyan.The association had been demanding the corridor for the last one decade. The association felt that the railway infrastructure in the urban side of the densely populated district was growing by leaps and bounds with proposals of mono rail as well as the Ring Route Railway.
The rural parts, however, continued to stumble under total ignorance from the Indian Railway. Due to this there was wide disparity between the urban and rural side of Thane. The problem was getting complex with the rise in population in the rural parts of the district. A proposal was even prepared for the Dahanu-Kalyan rail link and presented to the Union Ministry in 2000 at the
instance of the railway association. The union railway ministry kept the proposal in cold storage in February 2001. The rejection was on the grounds that the Indian Railways would not get the required number of commuters on the proposed
rail corridor.
The association, however, did not give up hope and continued to strive for the cause of the rural folks especially the tribal
citizens from the interior of the district. The sustained efforts bore fruit after the cold shouldered proposal was once again
presented before Mamata Banerjee, the present Union Railway Minister.
The only change was to increase the number of railway stations from 13 to 16. The ministry decided to get technical
study on the proposal conducted in the next financial year and with this hopes of the rail corridor coming into existence
have once again brightened up.
The railway association has now taken up a fresh demand to connect the rural parts of the district to districts like Pune
and Ahmednagar. The railway association members have called upon the union ministry to propose a rail corridor
between Dahanu, Ahmednagar and Pune so that the rural folks can also keep pace with the urban parts of the district as
far as railway amenities are concerned.

SOURCE (http://www.24dunia.com/english-news/shownews/0/Sanction-for-rail-lines-hailed/6187531.html)
MALAPPURAM: The Nilambur-Mysore Railway Action Council has welcomed a statement by Union Minister of State for Railways E. Ahamed that the Planning Commission had given sanction in principle for the Nilambur-Nanajangud and Angadipuram-Kozhikode rail lines.

The two lines have been termed “socially desirable rail lines” under the Vision 2020 of Indian Railways.

Action Council president C. Mohammedali and general secretary Biju Ninan said here that the Railways' move was the result of persistent efforts by the action council.

has this been posted before? Its a slightly dated article from last month.


IRCON signs Agreement for Sikkim Rail Project (http://www.mynews.in/News/IRCONigns_Agreement_for_Sikkim_Rail_Project_N55325.html)

IRCON International Limited, a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Railways, signed an agreement with Northeast Frontier Railway for construction of new Broad Gauge Railway line between Sivok to Rangpo connecting North Bengal to Sikkim.

The Agreement was signed at Guwahati in presence of Shri Shiv Kumar, General Manager, N.F. Railway, Shri Mohan Tiwari, Managing Director, IRCON and other senior officers of Railways and IRCON.

IRCON is having vast experience of construction of Mega railway projects in India and abroad including the construction of railway line in J&K which offers similar challenges. The project is planned to be completed in 5 years with an estimated cost of Rs. 3380 crore.

The proposed alignment connecting Sivok to Rangpo, passing through the foothills of Kanchanjungha mountain range and Teesta river valley is 45 km long with more than 32 kms length in tunnels, 28 bridges spanning deep gorges/valleys with likely bridge pier height more than 75 meters. When completed, this project will greatly improve the connectivity to Sikkim and will be a great boost to the State’s economy as well as tourism. Work on the project has already commenced.

^^ There is a great possibility that the Chinese will build a rail link from Lhasa to Nathula in near future. Probably Indians should take the challenge and build the link from NJP to Nathula and India China will be connecting through rail. Though this is hell challenging work and I don't have hope for IR :ohno:..

TELEGRAPH (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100611/jsp/frontpage/story_12553556.jsp)
- Burn Standard and Braithwaite go to rail
New Delhi, June 10: Wagon makers Burn Standard and Braithwaite, monuments to the rise and ruin of industry in Bengal, have been transferred to Mamata Banerjee’s railway ministry.

The Union cabinet, which cleared the transfer and helped Mamata keep an election promise, has decided to write off Burn Standard’s accumulated loans and dues of Rs 1,139.16 crore. The dues were standing in the way of private proposals to take over the sick company that owns lucrative real estate.

Burn Standard’s profit-making refractory unit in Salem will be shifted to steelmaker SAIL.

Burn Standard had turned sick 16 years ago. Braithwaite had also slipped into the red but has now clawed its way back to profits. The twists and turns had come to symbolise not only the condition of industry in Bengal but also step-motherly attitude of some central ministers towards units in the state. ( )

“We are taking them over (Burn Standard and Braithwaite). After all, the railways need huge numbers of wagons and in-house wagon makers will be an asset,” Mamata said.

The railways are planning to buy 18,000 wagons this financial year and the demand will go up when the east-west freight corridor is commissioned. A significant part of these orders will go to the two Bengal-based wagon makers, officials said. “Cash advances for the wagons will be used for modernising the factories and expanding capacities,” a Railway Board official said.

Keeping in mind local concerns — the two companies together employ around 1,500 people in Bengal — the railways said Rs 20 crore would be pumped in immediately to bring the pay scales of the wagon makers on a par.

The pay of Burn Standard employees is lower than that of Braithwaite now. “There is no question of anyone losing their jobs,” Mamata said.

The news of the takeover sent a wave of hope surging among employees of the two public sector units. Sipra Mukherjee, wife of Swapan Mukherjee who works in the Burn Standard unit in Burnpur, said: “For 16 years, we had suffered mentally. My husband looked worried all the time. But today we are all happy.”

Sipra gave a hint of the political dividends Mamata hopes to reap. “We are all hardcore CPM supporters. But today, I must thank Mamata Banerjee for her bold decision,” Sipra said.

Trinamul leaders were quick to point to the cabinet decision as another piece of evidence of Mamata’s growing acceptance in Delhi after the civic poll triumph.

Mamata had mooted the proposal in last year’s railway budget but the clearance came today. The two companies were under the heavy industries ministry, now headed by Vilasrao Deshmukh.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100611/images/11mam.jpg

Why are Private Indian Players like TATA Steel, RELIANCE , JSW are not interested in setting up railway ancillary companies. 18000 wagons and new coaches for passender travel is a huge potential ..Can understand the reason for TATA but others....any idea.

TELEGRAPH (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100611/jsp/frontpage/story_12553556.jsp)
- Burn Standard and Braithwaite go to rail
New Delhi, June 10: Wagon makers Burn Standard and Braithwaite, monuments to the rise and ruin of industry in Bengal, have been transferred to Mamata Banerjee’s railway ministry.


Wah, wah ... Mamta-ji has accelerated the pace of Anti-Privatization ... :lol:

PTI (http://www.ptinews.com/news/709715_Survey-of-Jogindernagar-Mandi-rail-link-complete)
Shimla, June 11 (PTI) The survey for extending the Pathankot-Jogindernagar railway line upto Mandi has been completed while that for conversion of the railway line into broad gauge was nearing completion, Union Minister Virbhadra Singh today said.

"Union Minister of State for railways E Ahmed communicated this to me in a letter providing information about progress of railway projects in Himachal," he said in a statement here.

Singh said that the survey of Bilaspur-Mandi-Kullu- Manali- Leh Broad gauge project would also be taken up soon and reiterated that Centre was serious about expanding rail connectivity in Himachal.

India’s Clogged Rail Lines Stall Economic Progress-- NY Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/16/business/global/16indiarail.html?hp)
By VIKAS BAJAJ

MUMBAI, India — S. K. Sahai’s firm ships containers 2,400 nautical miles from Singapore to a port here in four or five days. But it typically takes more than two weeks to make the next leg of the journey, 870 miles by rail to New Delhi.

For most of that time the containers idle at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port near Mumbai because railway terminals, trains and tracks are severely backlogged all along the route. Counting storage and rail freight fees, Mr. Sahai estimates the cost of moving goods from Mumbai to Delhi at up to $840 per container — or about three times as much as getting the containers to India from Singapore.

“They don’t have any physical space,” Mr. Sahai, who is chairman of SKS Logistics of Mumbai, said about the government-owned Indian Railways. “And all their trains are booked.”

As the world looks to India to compete with China as a major source of new global economic growth, this country’s weak transportation network is stalling progress.

Economists say India must invest heavily in transportation to achieve a long-term annual growth rate of 10 percent — the goal recently set by the prime minister, Manmohan Singh. But whether measured by highways, airways or — particularly — far-reaching railways, India’s transportation is falling short.

Critics say the growth and modernization of Indian Railways has been hampered by government leaders more interested in winning elections and appeasing select constituents, rather than investing in the country’s long-term needs. It is one of the many ways that the political realities of India’s clamorous democracy stand in contrast to the forced march that China’s authoritarian system can dictate for economic development.

A 40,000-mile, 150-year-old network, Indian Railways is often described as the backbone of this nation’s economy. And in fact it is moving more people and goods than ever: seven billion passengers and 830 million tons of cargo a year. But its expansion and modernization is not keeping pace with India’s needs.

“If it has to serve as the backbone of the Indian economy, the leaders of the Indian Railways have to think big, and they need to have a larger vision,” said S. Ramnarayan, a professor at the Indian School of Business and co-author of a book about the railways. “Thinking in terms of incrementalism — a little extra here, a little extra there — doesn’t solve anybody’s problem.”

The crash on an eastern rail link late last month that killed 151 people and injured hundreds of others underscored the vital nature of the railroads, as well as their vulnerability. The crash, which authorities have attributed to Maoist rebels, was particularly disruptive because it disabled a busy east-west line that, along with many others, was already stretched thin.

Traffic between big cities like Mumbai and Delhi, for instance, often runs at more than 120 percent of planned capacity, which means trains travel more slowly and tracks wear out faster than intended.

And because the railways’ tracks are too lightweight and the locomotives underpowered, Indian trains can haul no more than 5,000 tons of cargo, compared with 20,000-ton capacities in the United States, China and Russia.

India’s fastest passenger services, the Rajdhani and Shatabdi, have top speeds of only 160 kilometers (100 miles) an hour, while even the Amtrak Acela in the United States can hit 150 miles an hour in a few stretches. China’s bullet trains, meanwhile, zip along at an average speed of 215 miles an hour.

Political analysts say that the current railway minister, Mamata Banerjee, has been distracted by her party’s campaign to win elections in her home state of West Bengal. Those political ambitions, they say, have inspired populist policies by Indian Railways that are at financial odds with modernization and capital investments.

Even though Indian law allows the railways to acquire land quickly through hearings before magistrates, for example, Ms. Banerjee has promised farmers and other landowners that the ministry will negotiate with each landowner whose property must be acquired for two large freight projects. While popular with landowners, the process could add years to the projects.

An assistant to Ms. Banerjee said she was not available for an interview because she was busy with recently concluded municipal elections in West Bengal.

Ms. Banerjee is hardly the first railway minister with a political agenda, though. And most of the ministers who preceded her have funneled the railways’ limited resources into subsidies for passengers at the expense of freight service.

Even though passenger services lost about $4 billion last year, the government has not increased fares for seven years. And it has even lowered some prices, in the face of inflation that has ranged from 3.8 to 13 percent a year.

As a result, migrant workers, for example, can travel from Mumbai to their homes in Bihar, 1,050 miles away, for 500 rupees ($11). Last year, Ms. Banerjee introduced a new monthly ticket good for travel up to 100 kilometers (61 miles) for 25 rupees (54 cents).

“It’s very difficult to run a business on that,” a senior railway official said, insisting on anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

But, he added, Ms. Banerjee is helping the “large number of poor in the country who are eking out a living.”

To subsidize passenger travel, the railways levy some of the highest freight tariffs in the world. India charges $395 to move a ton of freight one kilometer — four times what American companies charge and twice as much as in China.

Business executives say their best hopes for improving the railroad’s costs and capabilities may ride on solutions not wholly reliant on Indian Railways.

Four years ago, the government began allowing private companies to operate container trains. One of the new carriers is IndiaLinx, which buys rail cars and leases tracks, locomotives and workers from the Railways.

Amitabha Chaudhuri, chief executive of IndiaLinx, said his company would carry about 95,000 containers this year, up from 55,000 last year. The company, which is owned by APL Logistics of Singapore, has seen strong demand for refrigerated containers, which are in short supply in India.

Analysts and officials also hope that plans proceed for dedicated freight corridors that would greatly increase capacity along the country’s most congested stretches of rail: Mumbai to Delhi in the west, and Punjab State to Calcutta on the east coast. The 1,700-mile network is expected to cost more than $9 billion.

For the western corridor, Japan has agreed to provide about $5 billion in low-interest loans to help India buy equipment and services from Japanese suppliers. And the World Bank is considering loans of up to $2.4 billion for the eastern corridor. Construction is expected to begin next year and be completed in 2017.

Analysts say India will be able to execute ambitious projects when it appoints competent managers and frees them from political interference.

A former railway bureaucrat, Elattuvalapil Sreedharan, for instance, is known for completing two major initiatives on time and on budget — the Konkan Railways, a 472-mile line on the mountainous western coast, and the Delhi Metro, a 118-mile subway system.

And in recent years, another bureaucrat, Sudhir Kumar, helped bolster rail profits by making trains longer and heavier, and by turning them around faster.

But broadly speaking, India does not have a stellar record of executing its plans. The backlog of rail projects runs 10 pages and is short $17 billion in required financing.

The oldest incomplete project, a 46-mile line in West Bengal, began in 1974 and has been delayed because the state government has not handed over some land.

Many of the projects were added to the planning list at the behest of politicians currying favor with voters back home.

One 37-mile line in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, is meant to give a direct rail route between the state capital and Mainpuri, a city with a population of about 200,000. The project was added to the railway budget in 1997, but it still needs $13 million in financing — money for which it has to compete against dozens of similar lines.

Analysts said it would be more efficient to connect such towns to main rail lines by buses. But Ms. Banerjee has said that the railways must build lines to help spur development in remote areas and smaller towns.

“We cannot and should not have a myopic view of viability,” she said during her annual budget speech in February.

“What is not viable today, if connected, will become viable tomorrow.”

One problem with India would be it's Sensitive Junta.
Having lived with cheap passenger fares for many years, increase in passenger fares, would meet strong criticism from people by all and sundry, specially from the Hinterlands of UP, MP and Bihar where percentage of people living below poverty line is large.

India strongly need to upgrade it's freight transportation infrastructure .

such articles are essential to aiding understanding ... the underlying problem is clear ... and it is 100% political ...

should be a good primer for those who call for "privatize now" ...

Freight transportation sector should be fully privatized-

Freight transportation sector should be fully privatized-

abhijeetm29 :

Indeed!

I am sure that "Your Majesties" will have the Private Sector take the Profits earned in the Freight Sector, which was subsidizing Indian Railways Passenger Fares, so that the Indian Government is left holding the Baby and then the Indian Government pays Billions upon Billion of US Dollars as Passenger Subsidy.

With such Friends of the Ordinary People of India the "Aam Janta" doesn't need ENEMIES!!

Bravo!!!

Cheers :cheers:

Source (http://www.hindustantimes.com/Mamata-Banerjee-wants-single-railway-police-force/Article1-558813.aspx)Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee wants to do away with the Government Railway Police (GRP) and give its powers to the Railway Protection Force (RPF).

The idea is to get rid of the duality of authority and the problems arising out of this. The minister has already had a draft RPF (Amendment) Act, 2010 readied and will likely move a cabinet note. If approved by cabinet, the bill will be introduced in the monsoon session of Parliament, sources said.

The draft bill suggests the 69,000-strong RPF be empowered to deal with all rail crimes. At present, it has the authority only to register an FIR in matters relating to theft or damage to railway property, besides dealing with minor offences like ticket-less travelling.

The GRP, on the other hand, is vested with powers under all the important sections of the Indian Penal Code.

“It’s a move in the right direction,” said former RPF director general A.K. Suri, but added that it won’t be easy to achieve. “If it wants to do away with the GRP, the Railways will not only be required to bring in an entirely fresh bill in Parliament, it will also need the concurrence of at least 50 per cent of the state governments.”

That won’t be easy.

“The idea is flawed and unconstitutional, as law and order is a state subject. The CPM will definitely oppose the bill if it comes up for consideration in Parliament,” CPI-M leader Basudev Acharia said.

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) is trying to simplify the notoriously convoluted process of making a reservation for travel on Indian Railways trains. They're revamping their website, in hope of increasing the number of people who book tickets through the site.

The new website aims to make the booking process more interactive and easy. And, importantly, the IRCTC intends to have more powerful servers to manage the load during peak times. Server overload is currently a major issue.

So, what improvements are being made to the website? Apparently, users no longer need to login (although it seems that this requirement currently still remains). The interface also provides more information on the same web page. What's particularly useful is that if you select a train and class, the availability, train details, and fare are all immediately displayed together on the same page. This information needs to be searched for one item at a time using the current IRCTC reservation system.

Try out the new beta version of the IRCTC website (https://www.irctc.co.in/cgi-bin/beta.dll/irctc/services/home.do#)for yourself and tell us what you think! It's definitely not free of errors yet though. I encountered a number of "communication problems" and other assorted error messages.

At least, it's a start though!

Source (http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/17/stories/2010061760350900.htm)
PANAJI: Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. (KRCL) was granted anti-collision device (ACD) patent in the United States of America for its “Track Identification System” (TIS) early this month.

Siddheshwar Telugu, public relation officer of KRCL, said on Wednesday that this patent was in addition to the ACD patents which have been granted to the Konkan Railway in India and abroad earlier.

KRCL's ACD network is capable of preventing collisions in mid-sections, collisions at high speed in station area, collisions with derailed vehicles obstructing adjacent line, collisions due to “train parting /jumbling,” collisions with “road vehicles” at level crossings through “Train Approach” warning and detection of “Gate Open.” Loco ACDs also give “Station Approach” warning to drivers.

This pilot project of ACD system, which was developed by KRCL, was commissioned in the North-East Frontier Railway in June 2007.

The Ministry of Railways has now assigned the work of installation of ACD Network initially on other three railways — South Western Railway, South Central Railway and Southern Railway.


18 patents

The KRCL had to its credit 18 patents granted for Sky Bus, ACD and TIS in India and abroad — the United States, Singapore, China and Russia, said Mr. Telugu.

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) is trying to simplify the notoriously convoluted process of making a reservation for travel on Indian Railways trains. They're revamping their website, in hope of increasing the number of people who book tickets through the site.

The new website aims to make the booking process more interactive and easy. And, importantly, the IRCTC intends to have more powerful servers to manage the load during peak times. Server overload is currently a major issue.

So, what improvements are being made to the website? Apparently, users no longer need to login (although it seems that this requirement currently still remains). The interface also provides more information on the same web page. What's particularly useful is that if you select a train and class, the availability, train details, and fare are all immediately displayed together on the same page. This information needs to be searched for one item at a time using the current IRCTC reservation system.

Try out the new beta version of the IRCTC website (https://www.irctc.co.in/cgi-bin/beta.dll/irctc/services/home.do#)for yourself and tell us what you think! It's definitely not free of errors yet though. I encountered a number of "communication problems" and other assorted error messages.

At least, it's a start though!

I have been trying to open up the beta version for some weeks now but no success till date.
May be its not compatible with Google Chrome

I have been trying to open up the beta version for some weeks now but no success till date.
May be its not compatible with Google Chrome

I was able to open it in IE 7 and Firefox . Did not try it on chrome .
The new site has lot of Web 2.0 features.

SOURCE (http://www.zeenews.com/news633904.html)
Agartala: The much-awaited conversion of railway track from meter gauge to broad gauge from Assam's Lumding to Agartala is expected to be completed by 2012, the government said today.

Replying to a notice initiated by CPI(M) MLA Manindra Chandra Das, transport minister Manik Dey said that it is likely to be completed by 2012.

"During a review meeting between Chief Minister Manik Sarkar with the General Manager of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) on February 10, the later said that the ongoing work from Lumding to Badarpur was progressing satisfactorily and the conversion work from Lumding to Agartala is expected to be completed by 2012."

The conversion work on the 394 km rail track from Lumding to Agartala was started in 1996 but has not made much progress due to militancy in North Cachhar Hills, Dey said adding that with the decline of insurgency in the area, work is progressing fast.


The minister further said that the state government had requested the NFR authorities to seek Assam government's help to provide more security in the area to expedite the conversion work.

De said, only three months would be needed to convert the railway track from narrow or meter gauge to broad gauge from Kumarghat to Agartala (110 km) because during the laying of rail lines, provisions were kept for swiftly converting it to broad gauge.

that is the height of short sightedness.
first make a brand new meter gauge line.
people haven't even realized that it exists and they have started the gauge conversion as well :bash:

that is the height of short sightedness.
first make a brand new meter gauge line.
people haven't even realized that it exists and they have started the gauge conversion as well :bash:

It was long-sighted planning ... what is the point of making the new section BG if the section connecting to it was MG? ... in fact, if you think about it, how would BG rolling stock be transported to Agartala over MG lines?

PTI (http://www.ptinews.com/news/730057_Railways-have-to-undertake-capacity-building--Mamata)
Kolkata, June 20 (PTI) Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee today stressed the need for capacity-building in the Railways to meet growing demand for rolling stock domestically and in some neighbouring countries.

"We have to go for a capacity-building programme. We need more rolling stock. There is also a demand for our rolling stock in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. We should indulge in capacity building to meet the demands," Banerjee said at a function at Ballygunj Junction station here.

The minister said when she ordered rakes for the Kolkata Metro from the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai she realised that the delivery was being delayed as the manufacturers were importing spare-parts from abroad.

"It is not that we cannot make these coaches. So we have decided to set up 10 new coach factories all over the country.

[URL="http://www.ptinews.com/news/730057_Railways-have-to-undertake-capacity-building--Mamata"]
"It is not that we cannot make these coaches. So we have decided to set up 10 new coach factories all over the country.

I wonder what the capital outlay is for these 10 new factories ... i suspect that this is Neta-speak ... Mamta-ji is talking through her hat ...

At the same time, this is an excellent opportunity for private funds to enter the fray ... I wonder if MMS-ji can coax Mamta-ji into such thinking ...

A long article but I guess its worth to read since it summarize a lot of key achievements of IR...


Indian Railways...Reaching more milestones in the past one year

On the completion of one year of the United Progressive Alliance-II, the Indian Railways have unprecedented achievements to its credit. This has helped launch IR towards a path of huge growth and development, keeping in view the future transportation needs of the nation. The period from May 2009 to May 2010 has been significant for the Railways in achieving its goals and targets with regard to the following:

Revenue Generation
The total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during the financial year 2009-10 were Rs. 86644.43 crore compared to Rs. 80264.60 crore during fiscal 2008-09, registering an increase of 7.95%. The total goods earnings have gone up from Rs. 54132.76 crore during 1st April 2008 - 31st March, 2009 to Rs. 58261.05 crore during 1st April 2009 - 31st March 2010, registering an increase of 7.63%. The total passenger revenue earnings during the financial year 2009-10 were Rs. 23751.38 crore compared to Rs. 21978.34 crore during fiscal 2008-09, registering an increase of 8.07%. Indian Railways have carried 887.99 million tonnes of revenue earning freight traffic during fiscal 2009-10. The freight carried shows an increase of 54.68 million tonnes over the freight traffic of 833.31 million tonnes actually carried during the corresponding period last year, registering an increase of 6.56%. The total approximate number of passengers booked during April 2009-March 2010- was 7442.65 million compared to 7096.01 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 4.88%. In the suburban and non-suburban sectors, the number of passengers booked during April 2009-March 2010 was 3860.85 million and 3581.80 million compared to 3789.03 million and 3306.98 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 1.90% and 8.31% respectively.

Indian Railways’ Vision 2020 & White Paper
Indian Railways’ Vision 2020 document presented in the Parliament by the Railway Minister aims at massive addition to its route network, segregation of passenger and freight services into separate double-line corridors, raising the speeds of passenger trains from the current 130 kmph to 160-200 kmph on some routes, zero accidents and equipment failures. The vision 2020 also envisages the implementation of atleast four high-speed rail projects to provide bullet train services at 250-350 kmph. A White Paper indicating the Railway’s present organizational, operational and financial status based on its performance in the last five years was also presented in the Parliament. White Paper will help understand the health of the Indian Railways better so that plans for corrective and constructive action for the future can be drawn.


First ever non-stop superfast ‘Duronto’ Express


Railways Launch Historic Non-Stop ‘Duronto’ Trains
Indian Railways added one more feather to its cap when it launched its new class of passenger carrying ‘Duronto’ trains in September 2009. So far twelve ‘Duronto’ trains have already been introduced on various major sectors in the country. ‘Duronto’ is a non-stop superfast passenger carrying train in the history of the Railways and heralds a new era of rail travel in the country ensuring better speed, comfort and security for passengers Outer colour scheme design of ‘Duronto’ coaches is distinct. The fare of ‘Duronto’ trains includes the cost of meals.

Train service operational in Kashmir Valley

Dream Of Kashmir Valley People Fulfilled
The Prime Minister dedicated to the nation the newly constructed 18 km long rail line between Anantnag and Quazigund, the last stretch of the railway line in the Kashmir Valley in October 2009. Earlier in Oct ober 2008 and February 2009, the railway lines from Anantnag to Mazhom (66 km) and Mazhom to Baramulla (35 km) were inaugurated by the Prime Minister. The entire 119 km long rail line from Baramulla to Quazigund in the valley has now become operational covering important stations like Sopore, Hamre, Pattan, Mazhom, Budgam, Srinagar, Pampore, Kakapora, Awantipura, Panjgam, Bijbiara, Anantnag and Sadura in both the directions.


First ever ‘Yuva’ Express train for youth of low income groups

Air-Conditioned ‘Yuva’ Trains For Unemployed Youth
The first ever ‘Yuva Train’ which is targeted mainly for the unemployed youths of the country has been introduced between Howrah-Delhi on 30th December 2009. These ‘Yuva’ trains are being introduced to ensure that the youth of low income groups can travel at low rates between major cities. The ‘Yuva Train’ fares will be applicable to unemployed persons also between the age group of 15 to 45 years. Initially, 60% of the total number of coaches will be earmarked for ‘Yuva’ category. The remaining will be earmarked for general passengers (non-Yuva). If successful, these ‘Yuva trains’ will be extended to other areas of the country. The total chargeable fare for Yuva passengers inclusive of all other charges like Reservation Fee, Superfast Train Charge and Development Charge would not exceed Rs.299/- up to a distance of 1500 kms and Rs. 399/- for distance beyond 1500 up to 2500 kms.

‘Only Ladies’ Special Emu Train Service
As announced in the Railway Budget 2009-10, the Ministry of Railways introduced ‘Only Ladies’ Matrabhumi EMU train services in Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata suburban on the pattern of Mumbai suburban as working women face considerable difficulties in traveling for work. These services will run for the convenience of women passengers during office hours.


Super Luxury ‘Maharaja’ Express Tourist Train

Luxury Train Maharaja Express
The Maharaja Express, super luxury train was flagged off in March 2010. This interesting tour covers both Buddhist and Hindu religious places at Bodh Gaya and Varanasi, the forests of Bandavgarh, the rock cut temples of Khajuraho, the Gwalior fort and the Taj Mahal. The train is being operated by Royal Indian Rail Tours Ltd (RIRTL), a joint venture between Cox and Kings (India) Ltd and Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). The luxury train has a total of 23 coaches with a passenger capacity of 84. It is the first luxury train that boasts of four distinct configurations. It has five Deluxe cars each with four cabins; six Junior Suite cars with three cabins; two Suite cars with two cabins each and finally the Presidential Suite that occupies one entire car.


Sanskriti Express – A tribute to Rabindranath Tagore

Sanskriti Express Exhibition Train
Sanskriti Express Exhibition train was flagged off from Howrah station as part of the celebrations of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore’s 150th birth anniversary and to showcase his life and philosophy. The five-coach train, adorned with various literacy creations and paintings of Tagore, will touch important stations in various parts of the country before returning to Kolkata May 8 next year. This exhibition train is a tribute to Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore on his 150th birth anniversary. This train will travel across India for one year. This train will carry various literary creations and paintings of Kabiguru,’said Banerjee at the flag off ceremony in the presence of several intellectuals and artists.

‘Izzat’ Monthly Season Ticket Scheme Launched
As announced by the Minister of Railways, Kumari Mamata Banerjee, while presenting Railway Budget 2009-10 in the Parliament, the Ministry of Railways introduced a new scheme of uniformly priced Monthly Season Tickets (MSTs) at Rs. 25/- inclusive of all surcharges which will be issued upto a distance of 100 Kilometers to persons working in unorganised sector with monthly income not exceeding Rs. 1500/-. This new scheme is called "Izzat". These ‘Izzat’ MSTs are being issued for journeys with effect from 01.08.2009.

First Ever Rail Link With Sikkim
Sikkim will have the first ever rail connectivity with the laying of foundation stone of the new broad gauge railway line between Sikkim’s small township of Rangpo and West Bengal’s border town of Sivok. This 52.7 km long new broad guauge Rangpo-Sivok line will be constructed at a cost of Rs. 1339.48 crore and has been declared as a ‘National Project’ for which 25% of the fund would be provided by Ministry of Railways through their gross budgetary support and balance 75% as an additionality by Ministry of Finance. The survey for further extension of this line from Rangpo upto Sikkim’s capital Gangtok (69 km) has also been completed recently and survey report is under examination in the Ministry of Railways.


Mamata Banerjee going round the first ever Air Conditioned ‘Double Decker’ coach

Railways’ First Ever Ac Double Decker Coach
Rail Coach Factory (RCF), rolled out country’s first air conditioned double decker coach for oscillation trials on Delhi- Muradabad section. A totally new coach shell design capable of running at a speed of 160 kilometre per hour was developed by RCF engineers in tandem with Research Design and Standard Organisation (RDSO) within a short span of just nine months. In the new design, 128 passengers can be seated as compared to 78 passengers in Shatabdi chair cars, thus increasing the capacity by almost 70%.


First ever Mobile Ticketing Van ‘Mushkil Aasan

Launching Of First Ever Mobile Ticketing Van ‘Mushkil Aasaan’
As announced by the Minister of Railways, Kumari Mamata Banerjee, in her speech while presenting the Railway Budget 2009-10 in the Parliament, the first ever mobile ticketing van ‘Mushkil Aasaan’ for issuing reserved and unreserved train tickets was launched in Delhi and Kolkata as a pilot project ‘The "Mushkil Aassan" mobile van has been introduced with the idea of taking the issuance of computerized tickets both reserved and un-reserved to both urban and rural areas so that poor people who are unable to go to the stations can now purchase tickets in market places, mohalls and other busy places. Mobile ticketing van will be introduced in rural areas after a detailed study of alternate type of communication suited for rural areas is done since the General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) used for mobile connectivity is not always available in adequate signal strength with many rural areas.

Perishable Cargo Centres Under Kisan Vision Project
With a view to encourage creation of facilities of setting up cold storage and temperature controlled perishable cargo centres through Public Private Partnership mode, a Task Force of representatives from the concerned ministries, Container corporation of India Ltd. (CONCOR), Central Warehousing Corporation Ltd. (CWC) and cold chain operators, has been constituted to draw up a road map for implementation of the project and identify few locations for pilot project for development of perishable cargo centres. The Pilot Project will be implemented through PSUs engaged in logistics. Foundation stone for the first pilot project under the Kisan Vision Project has been laid by the Minister of Railways at Singur in November 2009.

Implementation Of Dedicated Freight Corridor Project
Progress has been made in the implementation of Western and Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) project in the current year. Funding for the Western Corridor (1515 Kms) is from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) through the Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan under the Special Terms for Economic Partnership (STEP) scheme of Government of Japan. JICA would be funding about 80-85% of the project cost. JICA assistance for phase-I (Rewari-Vadodara, 950 Kms) is estimated at 405 billion Japanese Yen (about Rs. 210000 crore) and loan agreement for the first tranche for 90.262 billion Japanese Yen ( about 4500 crore) was signed on 31.03.2010. Engineering Consultancy services contract for Phase-I has been awarded by DFCCIL on 12.05.2010. Target for award of civil contract of Phase – I is October, 2011. For Phase-II the funding tie up with JICA is in advanced stage and Engineering Services loan agreement for 1.616 billion JPY (about Rs. 80 crore) is scheduled to be signed in June, 2010. Main loan for Phase-II (about 226 billion JPY, about Rs. 11300 crore) is targetted to be signed in May/June 2011.

Government of Japan is commissioning Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Social Impact Assessment (SIA) and Rehabilitation l& Resettlement Plan (RRP) studies for Phase- II in July’2010. In case of Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor, (1839 Km) funding for 1133 Kms [Ludhiana-Khurja (400 Ksms), Khurja-Kanpur (342 Kms) and Kanpur-Mughalsarai(391 Kms)] section is being availed from World Bank. World Bank would fund about 67% of the project cost and total World Bank assistance is estimated at US$2.4 billion (Rs. 12000 crore). The first loan agreement for Khurja-Kanpur section is targetted to be signed in October, 2010 and the estimated loan amount is US$ 850 million (Rs. 4750 crore). Loan agreements for Ludhiana-Khurja and Kanpur-Mughalsarai are being negotiated for signing in FY 2011-12. Bidding process has been initiated for Khurja-Kanpur section with the issue of Pre-Qualification document for civil works on 05.04.2010. Mughalsaira-Sonnagar section is being implemented with Indian Railways’ resources and civil construction contract for 109 Km section (New Ganj Khwaza to New Karvandia) was awarded in December, 2008 and work is in progress. Sonnagar-Dankuni section (534 Km) is to be implemented through PPP mode and appropriate PPP model is being developed by DFCCIL with assistance of consultants. Final Location Survey of this section is being undertaken by DFCCIL and is targeted for completion in July, 2010.

Unprecedented Thrust On Safety Issues
Unprecedented thrust on safety related issues was given during the year, particularly to enhance Safety at Level Crossings, Interlocking and Manning, provision of Limited Height Subways, Normal Height Subways, Road Under Bridges (RUBs), Road Over Bridges (ROBs), Expenditure on Road Safety Works, Catch Sidings etc, Safety aspects of Signals and their back-up power supply, Enquiry of Fire related Accidents, Monitoring of working of Loco Pilots, etc. As on March 31, 2009, there are total 1337 ROBs/RUBs works at various stages of planning and execution. During 2009-10, 40 ROB/RUB have been completed till November 2009 under various schemes. Indian Railways maintained 34,220 level crossings out of which 17244 had gatekeepers and 16,976 crossings were unmanned. In 2008-09, about 259 unmanned level crossings were provided with gatekeepers. And during 2009-10, total 132 unmanned gates have been provided with gatekeepers till November 2009. Comprehensive Disaster Management Plan of Indian Railways has been prepared with the approval of the Board and has been sent to National Disaster Management Authority. Railways are one of the few Ministries who have prepared their Disaster Management Plan as per the provisions of Disaster Management Act, 2005. Number of train accidents has shown a declining trend during the last few years. While, 115 consequential train accidents on account of collisions, derailments, fire in trains, manned level crossing accidents and other miscellaneous accidents occurred on Indian Railways in 2008-09, 100 such accidents took place in 2009-10.

Upgradation Of Diesel Locomotives, Modification In Coaches And Use Of CNG And Bio-Fuel
Through indigenous efforts, the Horse Power of EMD diesel locos has been increased from 4000 to 4500 which will permit them to haul heavier loads at higher speeds. It is planned to further upgrade the EMD locos to 5000+ Horse Power. Manufacture of latest technology EMD locomotives has been stepped up to 150 locos in 2009-10. Trials have also been completed and one power car of DMU has been converted to run on dual fuel mode using CNG and further proliferation is in progress. Design for Toilet facilities in DMUs has been finalized by the RDSO. ICF will turn out all the DEMU rakes during the current year with toilets. Railways has placed orders for procurement of bio-diesel. Successful laboratory tests have been carried out by using 10% blend of bio-diesel on trains. Introduction of these alternative fuels are environment –friendly and reduce dependency on fossil fuels. Bullet proof cabs have been provided for the first time on diesel locomotives working in Lumding – Badarpur section to thwart the threat to running staff in sensitive areas.



Export Of Diesel Locomotives
To promote the export of Diesel Locomotives and securing a niche in the International market, a most modern, new type 3000 HP, Cape Gauge diesel locomotive manufactured by Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW), Varanasi, a production unit of Indian Railways, has been dispatched to Mozambique. This is the first ever 3000 HP locomotive built in DLW for cape gauge.

Provision Of Quality Food In Trains
Instruction has been issued to Zonal Railways and Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) in May 2009 for improvement in quality of food in mobile catering units over Indian Railways. Janata meals priced at Rs. 10/- have been revamped on Indian Railways, to meet the catering requirement of common passengers. On an average 1.1 lakh Janata meals are sold every day on Indian Railways through refreshment rooms, food plazas and other catering stalls, etc. To meet the catering requirement of common people, Railways have plans to open Janahaar cafeteria exclusively to sell economy meals and Janta Meals at reasonable rates. Six Janahaar Cafeteria have been commissioned at Howrah, Bangalore, Secunderabad, Chennai, Lucknow and Gorakhpur railway station and five more will be set up shortly at Sealdah, Patna, Kharagpur, New Jalpaiguri and Mysore. Catering services of the similar level of Rajdhani/Shatabdi Express are being provided in newly introduced ‘Duronto’ Trains. All sleeper class passengers of Duronto Trains are also being provided meals on-board. In addition.

Railways To Run Exhibition Train To Mark Commonwealth Games
The work on the launch of an exhibition train to mark the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Delhi is in full swing. This exhibition train was announced by the Minister of Railways, Mamata Banerjee while presenting the Railway Budget 2010-11 in the Parliament. This train will be dedicated to the theme of Youth, Sports and Information Technology. Through this exhibition train, the Ministry of Railways will inculcate interests in sports in the people of the country particularly the youth. The Indian Railways, with its strong national presence, is the best medium for this kind of message to all nooks & corners of the country.

Phase-III ‘Science Express' & Red Ribbon Express
The Phase-III of the 'Science Express' which was inaugurated in October 2009 at Gandhinagar will travel to 55 locations, mostly not covered earlier, covering about 18,000 kms in seven months of its journey throughout the country. It is covering the entire length and breadth of the country. The second phase of Red Ribbon Express (RRE), which is a 10-coach exhibition train for creating awareness about HIV/AIDS in the far flung areas, was flagged off on the World AIDS Day.

Super Fast Parcel Express Trains
With a view to attract high value and transit sensitive non-bulk parcel traffic, Indian Railways introduced faster parcel services/premium parcel express trains named "Tejshree Parcel Sewa" between Delhi-Howrah-Delhi, Delhi-Ahmedabad/Vapi-Howrah as a pilot project. This is envisaged as a time-tabled service from dedicated terminals with guaranteed transit time.

Development Of Private Freight Terminals
With a view to increase Railways market share of automobile traffic and to facilitate aggregation and distribution centres for automobile traffic, a scheme is under finalization for development of automobile hubs near rail heads through Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode. The Railways Minister laid the foundation stone for one such auto hub at Shalimar in West Bengal in November 2009. A policy is under finalization to facilitate rapid development of a network of freight terminals with private investment to provide efficient and cost effective logistics services to end users including door to door services. Freight terminals can be green field facilities developed by private parties on private land or brown field facilities i.e. existing private sidings/container terminals on private a land which can be permitted to be converted to private freight terminals under the provisions of the proposed policy.

375 Stations To Be Developed As ‘Adarsh’ Stations
The Ministry of Railways has decided that 17 more railway stations may be added to the existing list of 358 Adarsh Stations. With this, the number of stations selected as ‘Adarsh Stations’ goes upto 375. Railways will develop Adarsh Stations with basic facilities such as drinking water, adequate toilets, catering services, waiting rooms and dormitories especially for lady passengers, better signage and other basic facilities are universally available. Necessary work has already been commenced at various stations.

Development Of Multi-Functional Complexes
Multi-functional Complexes are being developed at 50 railway stations of serving places of pilgrimage, industry and tourist interest in different parts of the country this year. Multi-functional Complexes in station premises to provide rail users facilities like shopping, food stalls and restaurants, book stalls, PCO/STD/ISD/Fax booths, medicine & variety stores, budget hotels, underground parking etc. Responsibility for development of these facilities will be entrusted to IRCON and Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) and Zonal Railways. The foundation stone for such first ever Multi-functional complex was laid by the Minister of Railways, Kumari Mamata Banerjee, at Siliguri in October 2009.

Improvement And Modernisation Of Signalling System
In order to increase efficiency and enhance safety in train operations, Electrical/Electronic Interlocking system in replacement of over-aged mechanical/multi cabin signaling system, has been provided at 339 stations during year 2009 (January to November). To improve reliability and visibility of signals, out dated filament type signals have been replaced with long life, highly durable LED signals at 853 stations. A total number of 578 stations have been provided with Data Logger for predictive maintenance and intensive supervision of Signalling system. Auto Block Signalling to increase line capacity has been provided on 209 Route kms. On Board Train Protection System (TPWS) has been commissioned on Chennai Central- Gummidipundi suburban section (50 RKMs) of Southern Railway as a pilot project. This system prevents ‘Signal Passing At Danger’ cases and enforces implementations of speed restriction. Second pilot project of Train Protection Warning System on main line (Delhi-Agra section of Northern/North Central Railway) is under way. Automatic clearance of Block Section has been provided at 448 sections through use of axle counters. This will reduce dependence on human element & enhance safety. A total A total of 439 numbers of level crossing gates have been interlocked with signals to enhance safety. Track Circuiting for enhancing safety by reducing human dependence, has been provided at 1387 locations in various station sections.

Improving Communication System On Railways
During Financial Year 2009-10, about 2500 Route km of Optic Fibre Cable OFC cable laid upto November 2009 by RailTel Corporation of Indian Limited. A total of around 37,000 Route Kms of OFC has so far been laid on Indian Railway system alongside railway track for improving communications. Works for laying 9,000 Kms of OFC further are under progress. Mobile Train Radio Communication system for communication among Train Driver, Guard, Station Master, Control Office and field maintenance staff during run of the train has been commissioned at about 700 Route Kms on Howrah –Dhanbad, Guwahati-New Bongaigaon and Mathura-Jhansi sections. Works are under progress for another 2700 Kms. Walkie-Talkie VHF communication between Guard, Driver & Stations has been provided.

Setting Up Of New Ancillary Units For Diesel And Electric Locos
The foundation stone was laid by the Minister of Railways for setting up of two factories for manufacturing electric and diesel engine components and also inaugurated the Project for Distribution of ‘Carbon Credit’ saving CFLs at Dankuni in West Bengal in December 2009. The factories will manufacture components and sub-assemblies for Electric locomotives for the Chittaranjan Production Units and the Diesel Locomotive Works. Other new production units to be set up by Indian Railways are; Rail Coach Factory at Rae Bareilly, Coach factory at Kanchrapara, Diesel Locomotive Factory at Marhowra, Electric Locomotive Factory at Madhepura and Rail Wheel Factory at Chhapra.

Expert Committee For Developing Business Models And Innovative Funding
An Expert Committee under the chairmanship of Dr Amit Mitra, Secretary General, FICCI for developing business models and innovative funding techniques through Public Private Partnership (PPP) instruments has been constituted. The committee has held several meetings and made recommendations which are at various stages of implementation. A five member Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of Shri Sam Pitroda, on the usage of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in the Railways has been constituted,

Transportation Of Drinking Water & Fodder Free Of Cost To Draught Affected Areas
With a view to facilitate better availability of basic commodities like water and fodder to drought affected areas in the country, Ministry of Railways has decided as a special case to permit the transportation of drinking water and fodder by rail, free of charge, to the notified drought affected districts of twelve states at "no cost" to the affected States. These States are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Nagaland, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. These instructions have come into force with effect from 01.12.2009 and remain valid upto 31.01.2010.

New Convenient System For Accredited Media Persons To Avail Concessional Train Fare
As a follow up to the announcement made by the Minister of Railways Kumari Mamata Banerjee in her Railway Budget 2009-10 speech, for the convenience of accredited media persons, the Ministry of Railways has decided to replace the existing system of Coupon Books for accredited press correspondents by more convenient Photo Identity Card based system for availing concessional train fare. Photo identification card will be issued by Railways to accredited press correspondents instead of coupons books. Accredited press correspondent will be eligible for 50% concession in the basic fares all classes of Mail/Express trains & all other charges are to be collected in full; and 50% in the all inclusive fares of all classes of Rajdhani/Shatabdi/Jan Shatabdi trains. This concession will not be admissible in Garib Rath trains. The new system of concession based on Photo Identity card and the increased concession on Rajdhani/Shatabdi/Jan Shatabdi trains has become effective from 15th October 2009. The Rail Travel Concession to dependent children and companion of accredited press correspondents who do not have a spouse has become effective from April 20, 2010.

Enhanced Fare Concessions For Students, Amateur Artists & Police Medalists
As announced by the Minister of Railways, Kumari Mamata Banerjee in the Railway Budget 2009-10, the Ministry of Railways has decided to extend the facility of free Monthly Season Tickets (MSTs) in 2nd class in the trains to students attending Madrasa, High Madrasa and Senior Madrasa for commuting daily between the stations serving their place of residence and Madrasa. It has also decided that 60% concession in the fares of Metro Rail Kolkata will be granted to both boy and girl students studying in schools/Madrasas/recognized vocational institutions upto classes academically equivalent to class XII. In addition, the Ministry of Railways has decided that amateur artists (theatrical, concert, musical, dancing and magician troups & students-artists of the National School of Drama, New Delhi when traveling alone or in group) who are presently eligible for 50% concession in First Class and 75% concession in Second and Sleeper Classes basic Mail/Express fares will now also be entitled to 50% concession in AC Chair Car, AC 3-tier and AC 2-tier classes in Mail/Express trains and 50% concession will also be granted in the all inclusive fares of Rajdhani/Shatabdi/Jan Shatabdi trains in AC Chair, AC 3-tier and AC 2-tier classes. It has also decided to enhance the concession for Police Personnel of 60 years and above who have received President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service from 30% to 50 percent for men and 60% for women in the basic fares of Mail/Express trains of all classes and in the all-inclusive fares of Rajdhani/Shatabdi/Jan Shatabdi trains.

Implementation Of Integrated Security System On Railways
Railways have taken several measures to strengthen security activities. An amount of approximately Rs. 344 crore has been sanctioned for implementation of Integrated Security System to strengthen surveillance mechanism at 195 sensitive stations of the country. Besides this, Rs.67 crore have already been distributed amongst the Zonal Railways for procurement of modern security gadgets. 12 Commando Companies of RPSF have been raised for special duties. The Minister has also announced raising of one ‘Mahila Commando Company’. RPF will also set up its own commando training centre at Canning in West Bengal. Thirty two RPF personnel have been awarded this year for their commendable acts. For the first time President Police Medal for gallantry has been awarded to RPF for showing exemplary bravely during terrorist attack on 26/11/2008 at CST, Mumbai.

High Powered Meeting On Security
High Powered Meeting to evolve new methods of ensuring better security of Rail Passengers was held in January 2010. The High Powered Meeting was attended by Member Staff, Railway Board and ex-Officio Secretary to Government of India, Director General, Railway Protection Force. (RPF), Home Secretaries of the States, the Police Officers Incharge of Railway Security in States, Officials from Ministry of Home Affairs and Intelligence Bureau (IB) and other officials of Railway Board. This meeting is seen as a major initiative undertaken by Ministry of Railways on the issue of security of passengers and the keen participation of the State Government representatives was an important hallmark of the meeting.

IRCTC Launches Toll Free 24 x 7 Helpline
Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited (IRCTC), a public sector undertaking of the Ministry of Railways, has launched a centralised Toll Free telephone No. 1800-111-139 for the convenience of railway users to suggest/grievances relating to catering services on Indian Railways. The facility is available 24x7 on this number and railway passengers can register their complaints/suggestions regarding food and catering services. Wherever possible, action is taken on real time basis for redressal of their grievances. "139 – Rail Sampark", the authorized enquiry for Indian Railway has recently introduced the facility of Railway enquiry through SMS which is a premium service. The users can obtain information regarding PNR status, fare, seat availability and arrival/departure by sending SMS in the specified syntax to 139.

Introduction Of Mobile Bridge Inspection Units
The Indian Railways as part of its high-tech operations has introduced Mobile Bridge Inspection Units (MBIU) for inspection and maintenance of railway bridges to ensure more safety. Cranes provided in these Mobile Bridge Inspection Units have been imported from Germany. Carrier vehicles and power units for these MBIU have been provided by Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Railways. Approximate cost of each MBIU is about eight crore. Two MBIU have recently been introduced on Indian Railways, one in Northern Railway and the other in Central Railway.

Railways Bag Four Energy Conservation Awards
The Ministry of Railways has achieved another milestone when three of its Zonal Railways bagged four of the National Energy Conservation Awards in 2009. In Railway sector, Western Railway headquartered at Mumbai (Maharashtra) bagged the first prize, North Eastern Railway headquartered at Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh) got the second prize and West Central Railway headquartered at Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) received the Certificate of Merit. In Office Building sector, West Central Railway again bagged the first prize for its General Manager Office Building.

Introduction Of E-Procurement System
E- Procurement System (EPS) is aimed at attaining total transparency in public procurement system of Indian Railways. The E-Procurement Application for Indian Railways (www.ireps.gov.in) has been successfully rolled out by CRIS for 13 Zonal Railways/Production Units. Till now Railways have uploaded over 44192 e-tenders and about 39485 e-tenders have been opened as on December 14, 2009.

Revamping Of Railway Recruitment Boards
The Ministry of Railways took several steps to revamp Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs). It has been decided to hold the examination for a particular post on the same date simultaneously by all RRBs. It has now been decided that the exam of all RRBs throughout the country. The question paper of RRB exam will be printed in addition to Hindi, Urdu and English, in local languages listed in the Eight Schedule of the Constitution of India, falling within the jurisdiction of that RRB. For this purpose first official language(s) of the State(s) in which all the divisions/Units of that RRB are located, is taken as the local language(s). It has also been decided to waive the examination fees for women, minorities and economically backward sections of society, having annual family income of less than Rs. 50,000/-. Special recruitment drives and special promotion drives were carried out for wiping out backlog vacancies of SCs and STs.

Innovative Steps Taken For Better Medical Care
The Ministry of Railways has decided to open Medical and Nursing Colleges on Railway land with existing Railway Hospital under PPP which will have seats for wards of railway employees. To start with, five places have been identified i.e. Kanchrapara, Kharagpur, Kolkata, Chennai & Guwahati. This will also help to meet shortage of Doctors and Nurses. To augment the medical services, introduction of Senior Residency and DNB programmes (Post Graduate Teaching) have been introduced in Railway hospitals. For procuring quality drug for our railway beneficiaries a new "Drug Procurement Policy" have been introduced. Tele medicine has been started in 18 centres and many more are in process. Hospital Information Management System is being started in Jagjivan Ram Hospital, Western Railway, Mumbai as a pilot project and will be extended to all the hospitals of Indian Railways.

Enhanced Fare Concession For Cancer Patients
As announced by the Minister of Railways, Mamata Banerjee in her Budget Speech 2010-11, the Ministry of Railways has decided to enhance the element of concession to cancer patients in 3-AC and Sleeper class from existing 75% to 100%. The element of concession for escort in 3-AC and Sleeper remains unchanged i.e. 75%. It has become effective from 20th April, 2010. Cancer patients and their escorts are given concession in railway fares for going to (and returning from) recognized hospitals for treatment and periodic checkup.

Railways Endeavour To Attract PPP
In a landmark initiative undertaken by Ministry of Railways to attract private participation in various railway projects, an Interactive Workshop was organised by the Railways with the representatives of Chambers of Commerce & Industry to obtain their feed back on a number of policy initiatives involving private participation which have recently been formulated. The workshop was organized against the backdrop of Railway Minister’s ardent desire to involve all the stake-holders in an honest dialogue as an integral part of the formulation of major policy initiatives of Indian Railways.

Achievements In Sports
In the field of sports Indian Railway sportspersons have created many landmarks during 2009. Shri Ramesh Kumar of Northern Railway has won Bronze medal in the Senior World Wrestling Championship held in Denmark in September 2009. Any Indian Wrestler won medal in this championship after a long gap of 42 years. Shri R.R. Laxman, Chess player working in ICF, Chennai has become India’s latest Grandmaster while playing in the 4th Kolkata Open Grandmaster Chess Tournament held in Kolkata from 31st August 2009 to 10th September 2009. He is the first chess player who has achieved this distinction in Indian Railways. In the World Powerlifting Championship held in Gurgaon from 2nd to 7th November 2009, Shri P. Suresh (Western Railway) and Shri Rana Shyam Singh (South Eastern Railway) have won Silver and Bronze Medals, respectively. Besides, Shri Sushil Kumar, Wrestler has been awarded with "Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna", the highest individual sports award of the country. Moreover, Shri Jaidev Bisht, Boxing Coach has been honoured with prestigious "Dronacharya Award" and Shri Mangal Singh Champia, Archer & Ms. Surinder Kaur, Women Hockey player have also been honoured with "Arjuna Awards". In addition, the Government of India have awarded the first "Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar", in the category – Employment of Sportspersons and Sports Welfare Measures, to Railway Sports Promotion Board.

Enhanced Productivity Linked Bonus
For the financial year 2008-09, Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB) equivalent to 75 days wages has been paid to all non-gazetted Railway employees. About 13.05 lakh non-gazetted Railway employees have benefited by this scheme. The PLB paid for the year 2008-09 is the highest bonus payment ever made by the Railways reflecting the splendid performance of Railways during the year.

Source:- http://www.indiainfoline.com/Markets/News/Indian-Railways...Reaching-more-milestonesin-the-past-one-year/4864552385

Indian Railways...Reaching more milestones in the past one year


AS POSTED ABOVE-POST NO 1886 BY EMP

Palace on Wheels fourth best in the world (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/et-cetera/Palace-on-Wheels-fourth-best-in-the-world/articleshow/6076258.cms)

Jaipur, June 21 (PTI) Rajasthan's luxury train 'Palace on Wheels' has been adjudged the fourth best among the top ten luxury trains of the world by noted global travel magazine Conde Nast.

For the year 2009, the magzine had asked its readers for the first time to vote for their favourite train. They were asked to rank each train out of 100 points.

"The Palace on Wheels attained 83.94 points and was ranked fourth below the Venice Simplon-Orient Express (89.92 points), Eurostar (86.92 points) and Pride of Africa, Rovos Rail (84.25 points)," MD and Chairman of Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) Manjit Singh said today.

It will give a boost not only to the luxury trains of Rajasthan but also to tourism in the state. The train currently is undergoing a major revamp at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore, Singh said.

Indian Railways...Reaching more milestones in the past one year



looks like UPA's manifesto

looks like UPA's manifesto

interesting that two members posted the propaganda piece ... it has no sense of past or future ... it has simultaneously taken credit for "milestones" in Kashmir and Sikkim ... :lol:

exactly my point.
The reporting's aint any better either.
AFAIK Shram Shakti and Sampoorna Kranti express were the first non stop long distance trains and not Duruntos.

Sanjusky: Can you please edit your post?
You have posted the same article twice in your post

Don't the railways know the terms delegation and outsourcing? Keeping all to themselves and then boast of developing indigenous products which have already been implemented years before in the remotest parts of the world :bash:.
Why can't it just be a managing organisation instead of trying (and screwing) to get the hands on anything and everything ranging from developing stations to manufacturing locomotives/coaches.

The Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2010/06/21/stories/2010062156790700.htm)


Railways to become self-sufficient: Mamata

Ananya Dutta

New trains: Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee along with Union Minister of State for Shipping Mukul Roy (Centre) and newly-elected Mayor of Kolkata Sovan Chatterjee flagging off the Sealdah-Sonarpur and Sealdah-Canning local trains in Kolkata on Sunday.
KOLKATA: Stating that the lack of ancillary industries was holding back the implementation of certain projects, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjeee said here on Sunday that the Railways will be self sufficient in the coming years.

“I think that the Railways should stand on its own feet,” Ms. Banerjee said at an official function.

“There are several projects which are held up because the reliance of certain parts that have to be imported. The Railway has to deal with all these problems, and we have to be ready to face them. But in the coming years, Railways will have no problems,” she added.

Ms. Banerjee said that in the current Railway budget she had announced the setting up a new Rail Axel factory that will achieve self-sufficiency in axel manufacturing.

The Ministry of Railways has also recently acquired wagon manufacturers, Braithwaite and Company Ltd. and Burn Standard and Company Ltd.

Ms. Banerjee also assured that all projects announced in this year's budget will be executed. “Last year I had promised 118 trains and all of which are running,” she said.

Announcing a slew of projects for the area, Ms. Banerjee emphasised on the need for building infrastructure and its affect on the economy of the region.

However, she assured that the Railways would not carry out any evictions in the course of executing any projects.

Palace on Wheels fourth best in the world (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/et-cetera/Palace-on-Wheels-fourth-best-in-the-world/articleshow/6076258.cms)

Not sure how the EuroStar can be classified as a luxury train. It is not just one train, but a fleet of high-speed trains with no special ammenities or luxury. Nothing exclusive about them. Costs around USD120 for a return trip between London and Paris which is much cheaper than a return ticket in economy class by BA at around USD190.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/green-toilets-trains-soon-577

June 23: All long-distance trains of the country will soon have safe and environment-friendly ‘green’ toilets designed and developed by scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). The major attraction of this toilet will be its cozy nature. “This is a toilet that people would like to enjoy,” a senior DRDO scientist told Deccan Chronicle.

The green toilet is based on bio-digester technology. “We will deploy a consortium of bacteria from Antarctica which have been brought down to India by our team of scientists. These bacteria, known as inoculums, are bio-digesters which eat up all pathogenic bacteria in the faecal material. They will also neutralise the organisms causing the smell,” said Dr G. Ilavazhagan, director, Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences, New Delhi.

According to Dr Ilavazhagan, the inoculum-treated material would not cause any harm to human beings or the environment. “The treated material could be discharged into the track itself. Once the pathogenic bacteria are destroyed, there is nothing to fear,” he said.

...

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/green-toilets-trains-soon-577

June 23: All long-distance trains of the country will soon have safe and environment-friendly ‘green’ toilets designed and developed by scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

I wish someone would define "soon" ... I have been reading such reports for something like 6-8 years ... how long does it take to retrofit a toilet?

The major attraction of this toilet will be its cozy nature. “This is a toilet that people would like to enjoy,” a senior DRDO scientist told Deccan Chronicle.


Wah, wah! ... COZY, eh? ... no more "thandi hawaa" on your butt? ... I can't wait to use, nay ENJOY, these new toilets ... :lol:

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/green-toilets-trains-soon-577

The major attraction of this toilet will be its cozy nature. “This is a toilet that people would like to enjoy,” a senior DRDO scientist told Deccan Chronicle.


...


Enjoy?? Does it have an inbuilt butt massager?

As a saying goes - Enjoy whatever you do.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/green-toilets-trains-soon-577

June 23: All long-distance trains of the country will soon have safe and environment-friendly ‘green’ toilets designed and developed by scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). The major attraction of this toilet will be its cozy nature. “This is a toilet that people would like to enjoy,” a senior DRDO scientist told Deccan Chronicle.

The green toilet is based on bio-digester technology. “We will deploy a consortium of bacteria from Antarctica which have been brought down to India by our team of scientists. These bacteria, known as inoculums, are bio-digesters which eat up all pathogenic bacteria in the faecal material. They will also neutralise the organisms causing the smell,” said Dr G. Ilavazhagan, director, Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences, New Delhi.

According to Dr Ilavazhagan, the inoculum-treated material would not cause any harm to human beings or the environment. “The treated material could be discharged into the track itself. Once the pathogenic bacteria are destroyed, there is nothing to fear,” he said.

...

Again those DRDO guys are planning something which spill on to tracks.. I thought at least from now on tracks will look clean.

can any one tell me how these japanese and europeans are managing their waste disposal in trains? Does their tracks are also as dirty as ours?

I donno as iam living in a developed country where there is no long distance trains and only metros.

Cheers

TOI (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Mamata-flags-off-Games-train/articleshow/6088652.cms)
NEW DELHI: Railway minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday flagged off a special exhibition train to promote the Commonwealth Games across India. The train on Friday reaches Amritsar where the Queen’s Baton Relay arrives from Pakistan.

The train has 14 coaches, including five dedicated to sports and Commonwealth Games and six to information technology, an official said.

One coach will be converted into a 100-foot-long travelling sports photo exhibition, curated by filmmaker Sunil Yash Kalra, who has donated rare pictures from his collection of over 5,000 photos.

The train will journey to 48 stations across the country. It will follow the Queen’s Baton in places with railway connectivity.

The train is painted with logos of the 19th edition of the Commonwealth Games and the Indian Railways. It will return to New Delhi by October 1, ahead of the October 3-14 mega event.

Again those DRDO guys are planning something which spill on to tracks.. I thought at least from now on tracks will look clean.

can any one tell me how these japanese and europeans are managing their waste disposal in trains? Does their tracks are also as dirty as ours?

I donno as iam living in a developed country where there is no long distance trains and only metros.

Cheers

This is off-topic...why does the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) be involved in toilet research? :lol::lol::lol::lol:

Its high time the GoI form another institution for performing civilian research. :)

Wah, wah! ... COZY, eh? ... no more "thandi hawaa" on your butt? ... I can't wait to use, nay ENJOY, these new toilets ... :lol:

:lol::lol: yeah one can enjoy thandi hawa tickling his a$$ all the time while defecating in toilets for free.. Why are they changing the design? Indian travelers will no longer be able to enjoy their visit to toilet which felt like a complete bliss in winters.:lol:

Source (http://www.indianexpress.com/news/cm-need-rail-link-to-leh-to-ward-off-external-threat/639881/0)
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal raised the demand for Manali-Leh railway line with UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Monday and drew her attention towards “external threats” to the country in view of the extensive network of rail and road connectivity established by China in Tibet.

Sharing the dais with Sonia Gandhi, after she laid the foundation stone of the Rohtang Tunnel, Dhumal said while the project would go a long way in giving a boost to the economy of Lahaul-Spiti and help the Army use this as an alternative road — as happened during the Kargil War — there is also a need to build a railway line up to Leh. “It could be done by extending the Pathankot-Joginder Nagar railway line via Mandi-Manali or Bhanupali-Bilaspur, as the construction of this line is important from both defence and tourism points of view,” said Dhumal.

He also used the occasion to seek extension of the Central industrial package, which was withdrawn on March 31, 2010.

Referring to the role of Himachal Pradesh in protecting the country’s borders as a large number of people from the state serve in the defence forces, the CM demanded relaxation in the criteria for recruitment to the forces in respect of people from Himachal. He also stressed on the one-rank-one-pension formula in the larger interest of soldiers.

Dhumal said the construction of Rohtang Tunnel would meet the long pending demand of the people of Lahaul and Spiti. “Rajiv Gandhi had envisioned its construction, but former prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee gave it a final shape by announcing the project in 2000 at Keylong, and later laid the foundation stone of the approach road to the tunnel on May 28, 2002,” he said.

Speaking at the function, Union Minister for Steel Virbhadra Singh endorsed the CM’s demand for Manali-Leh railway line and said the railway network in the state should be given priority by proposing new projects for link to Hamirpur and Joginder Nagar, making Mandi a junction station.

Virbhadra asserted that Himachal was getting liberal help from the state and the state should ensure that the grants were properly utilised for the welfare of the people.

Others present on the occasion were Union Minister of State for Defence M M Pallam Raju and CLP leader Vidya Stokes, besides senior Congress and BJP leaders.

HELPING HAND

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Kolkata/Howrah: Railway minister Mamata Banerjee placed orders for 1,250 more wagons to Braithwaite & Co Ltd (BCL) and Burn Standard Co Ltd (BSCL) on Tuesday during her maiden visit to the two wagon manufacturing units after their acquisition by her ministry.A few days ago,the railways had placed orders for 1,000 wagons with the two Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs).
The minister also announced that SAIL has offered land at Kulti in Burdwan to set up a large wagon manufacturing unit.The railways will be part of this project for which RITES will provide technical knowhow.
Mamata was given a grand welcome at both places,with even Citu leaders turning up to honour her with flower bouquets.The railway minister said that the political affiliation of a worker does not matter to her so long as the person works hard.
We have placed orders for 750 more wagons and 15 cranes from Braithwaite.Orders for couplers,girders and high-tech stainless steel body wagons will also be placed in the future.Mid-life rehabilitation of wagons will also be done here.To overcome the crisis of working capital being faced by the company,railways will initially provide the steel required for the wagons.We will strive to convert this organisation into a Navratna.The post of an executive director will be created to look after BCL and BSCL, Mamata said at BCL which has 450 employees.
MD Sanjay Rishi said the ministers gesture was unbelievable.We have the potential and will complete the order on time, he said.
At the BSCL unit in Howrah,Mamata said the railways has 11 other PSUs under its control and employees are well taken care of.Efforts had been made to take over Basumati as well but the state government did not agree,she said.
The issue of working capital has not been sorted out as yet but I have told the Centre that sick industry rules would no longer apply for this organisation.The Centre will have to come up with some new plan.I have spoken to the union finance minister about this.Employees are still being paid at the 1992 pay scale.I have proposed that the 1997 pay scale be brought into effect.Employees will also receive bonus for the first time after so many years.I have received Rs 30 crore from the finance ministry.There will be no dearth of orders as the railways will require at least 2,000 wagons every year, the railway minister said.
BSCL,which has been sick for nearly 15 years now,has 268 permanent employees and 800 temporary workers.Company managing director S P Bakshi wants to retain the services of some experienced employees who are slated to retire in the next few months.

HELPING HAND

Railway minister Mamata Banerjee placed orders for 1,250 more wagons to Braithwaite & Co Ltd (BCL) and Burn Standard Co Ltd (BSCL) on Tuesday during her maiden visit to the two wagon manufacturing units after their acquisition by her ministry.

Wah, wah!! ... No bid contracts galore ... would put Dick Cheney to shame ... Long live Liberalization ... Long live Privatization ... Mamta-ji will deliver us from ignorance ... :lol:

^^ This was not privatization. This was a transfer from Ministry of Heavy Industries to Ministry of Railway.

then privatize all the wagon and loco manufacturing units and let them bid along with the global competitors.

^^ This was not privatization. This was a transfer from Ministry of Heavy Industries to Ministry of Railway.

next time I will put the sarcasm alert flag ...

those two units should have been put to sleep ... no investor would touch those sick units, so privatization is out of the question ...

but, instead of letting them die, Mamta-ji is giving them no-bid contracts to continue their shoddy work ... wah!

as I have said repeatedly, why blame babus when our Neta-brigade is capable of ruing everything single-handedly?

^^ I understood that you were sracastic. I was trying to correct you becuase you words of "liberazation" and "privatization" were fitting the context here.

Why would you allow any manufacturing unit to die down ? Do you understand how many workers will go jobless ? They are not educated enough to get new jobs .

I am not a fan of Mamata, but I appreciate what she has done here reviving those 2 sick units . Now regarding the quality of what is getting manufactured , it will depend upon what is getting ordered , if the Railway department orders for High Quality Maglev Cars , then that will get built , if it asks them for 2nd clas genral train , that will get build . It depends upon how much railways is willing to spend.

Why would you allow any manufacturing unit to die down ? Do you understand how many workers will go jobless ? They are not educated enough to get new jobs .

I am not a fan of Mamata, but I appreciate what she has done here reviving those 2 sick units .

The units were sick for a reason ... Mamta-ji has given out more dole to the units without doing anything to help them out of their fundamental sickness ... they will remain sick and suck on public funds ...

if the units were killed, Mamta-ji could have attracted investment in the wagon sector to West Bengal and started privatizing wagon manufacture ... nobody would have lost their jobs because the new factories would have needed workers ...

there would be some period of uncertainty, but this is how it works ... the politicians need a stomach for such tough decisions ...

of course, there would be a difference ... in their new jobs the workers would have to work and not rely on leftist unions to protect their laziness ...

Boss, I understand very well why India is India ... your arguments are very much a part of the classical Indian ethos ... I am cool with it ... I like the fact that India is a chaotic mess that will never change ...

But, I wonder why some folks also argue for change in the same breath ...

^^ I defintely agree that they were sick for a reason, but trying to revive them .. This is one good thing Mamata has done. I am sure you do not know thing about the workers class people in west Bengal. They would have defintely lost jobs and they are not educated enough to get another job.
It does not mean I am against privitaization. I am only supporting the fact here that by restructuring the 2 units she has helped the people over there or else they would have lost their Jobs.

Also how can the politician have stomach to make the same people jobless from whom they get the votes.

My views might sound to you like classical Indian ethos , but even in modern economies people try to save their jobs for the people of their own country rather than bringing forigners from outside . Compare it to this and let me know if my views still sound like classical Indian ?

Now regarding the quality of what is getting manufactured , it will depend upon what is getting ordered , if the Railway department orders for High Quality Maglev Cars , then that will get built , if it asks them for 2nd clas genral train , that will get build . It depends upon how much railways is willing to spend.

Boss, I had decided to let it go, but this is too good ... so, you think that it is only an issue of "ordering the right stuff"? ... and BCL and BCSL and other such union infested sick-unit jokers will wake up one day and start manufacturing "High Quality Maglev Cars" ...

Wow.

I am only supporting the fact here that by restructuring the 2 units she has helped the people over there or else they would have lost their Jobs.

What "restructuring" did she do? ... this is just a change of ministries within GOI (as you stated) ...

If you were responsible for giving alms to some set of beggars and one day you told me that I was responsible, is that restructuring?

Boss, I had decided to let it go, but this is too good ... so, you think that it is only an issue of "ordering the right stuff"? ... and BCL and BCSL and other such union infested sick-unit jokers will wake up one day and start manufacturing "High Quality Maglev Cars" ...

Wow.

Yes , I think if Indian Railways pays good amount then they will get high quality coaches , if they pay pennies they will get degarded stuff.
Obviously if you go to the market and try to buy bhindi, One of they selling for 5 Rs KG and and another one 20 Rs kg , and if you try to save money by buying 5 Rs KG bhindi , fir to tere ko sada hua hi milage na !! Desi Anade bhi Broiler Ande se mehenge hote hain.. Do ou know why ?
Once you get to know this , the you will be able to understand the logic what I am saying.

What "restructuring" did she do? ... this is just a change of ministries within GOI (as you stated) ...?

isn't that restructuring ?

I give up.

Changing ministries is restructuring.

Maglev trains are like eggs and bhindi.

Mera Bharat Mahaan.

If you were responsible for giving alms to some set of beggars and one day you told me that I was responsible, is that restructuring?

and who are the beggers here ? you are comparing Workers to beggers which is really insane. Workers are people who build you country .

I think you are hell bent on calling the employees of these 2 units Jokers , beggers and hell bent on making them jobless .

I am damm sure that you haven't gone through the phase of life when you don't know when you will get your next meal, and good luck for that ; had that been the case you would never have talked in making some one jobless or calling some one a begger or a joker without even knowing who they are.

I give up.

Changing ministries is restructuring.

Maglev trains are like eggs and bhindi.

Mera Bharat Mahaan.

Thank you very much agyani balak for giving up. you will not understand the difference between desi anda and broiler Anda .

Mera Bharat Mahaan.

Source (http://newstodaynet.com/newsindex.php?id=22174%20&%20section=7)
Southern Railway will run many new trains from tomorrow and the running speed of several trains will be increased, Southern Railway general manager Deepak Kishan today said.
.
Addressing media persons after releasing the new time table, Deepak Kishan, said, ‘ two non-stop Duranto Express trains will be introduced from tomorrow. One will run between Coimbatore and Chennai Central and another from Ernakulam to Lokmanya Tilak railway terminus’. They will be operated six days a week.

On the Duranto Express between Chennai Central and Coimbatore, Deepak Kishan said, ‘ it will leave Chennai at 6.50 am and reach Coimbatore at 1.30 pm. In the return direction, it will leave Coimbatore at 9.50 and reach Chennai Central at 3.05 am the next day’.

Some of the new express trains to be introduced by Southern Railway include Chennai - Haldia Weekly Express, Chennai Central - Jalpaiguri, Coimbatore - Tirupati Inter City Express (thrice a week), Madurai - Tirupati Express (twice weekly), Tiruchy - Mangalore weekly, Nagercoil - Mangalore weekly, Pudhucherry - Howrah via Katpadi (weekly), Ernakulam - Pune twice weekly. He further informed that six passenger trains - Nallamboor Road - Soranoor, Thiruchendur - Thirunelveli, Mayiladuthirai - Thanjavur, Kozhikode - Kanoor, Coimbatore - Pollachi, would also be operated.

A special electric train will run between Chennai - Tirupati for six - days. Similar trains would be run for six days between Salem and Katpadi, Coimbatore and Erode and Kollam and Ernakulam. Frequency of trains between Chennai Central to Arakonam, Tiruttani and Velacheri would be increased, he added.

The broad gauge works between Thenkasi and Thirunelveli, Mayiladuthurai and Thriuvarur would be completed before March, next year. The works for laying tracks between Salem and Nammakkal would be completed soon, he said.

and added, ‘rail traffic will opened between Velankani and Nagapatinam soon’.
‘Following attempts to derail train at Villupuram by anti-socials, security and vigil has been increased. RPF would take appropriate efforts to ensure safety and security of passengers’, he said

Source (http://www.livehindustan.com/news/desh/deshlocalnews/39-0-124408.html&locatiopnvalue=1)
उत्तर रेलवे ने बिहार जाने वाली कुछ और ट्रेनों को इस वित्तीय वर्ष के दौरान नयी दिल्ली और हजरत निजामुददीन रेलवे स्टेशनों की बजाय नव निर्मित आनंद विहार रेल टर्मिनल से चलाने का निर्णय किया है ।

इस साल जिन ट्रेनों को आनंद विहार स्थानांतरित किया जायेगा उनमें विक्रमशीला एक्सप्रेस, मगध एक्सप्रेस, सप्त क्रांति एक्सप्रेस और नार्थ ईस्ट एक्सप्रेस जैसी लोकप्रिय ट्रेनें शामिल हैं ।

उत्तर रेलवे के महाप्रबंधक एस के बुद्धालकोटी ने रेलवे की नयी समय सारणी जारी करते हुए यहां संवाददाताओं को यह जानकारी दी । उन्होंने बताया कि नयी समय सारणी में दस रेल गाडिम्यों के टर्मिनल में फेरबदल को शामिल किया गया है जिनमें छह रेल गाडिम्यां ऐसी हैं जो आनंदविहार से शुरू होंगी और वापसी में वहीं अपनी यात्रा समाप्त करेंगी। आनंद विहार टर्मिनल से इन ट्रेनों के परिचालन की तिथियों की घोषणा बाद में की जायेगी ।

उन्होंने बताया कि नयी दिल्ली सीतामढी लिच्छवी एक्सप्रेस और दिल्ली हटिया झारखंड एक्सप्रेस ट्रेन 15 जुलाई से आनंद विहार टर्मिनल से चलेंगी । फिलहाल चार ट्रेनें आनंद विहार स्टेशन से चल रही हैं। इन ट्रेनों को आनंद विहार से चलाने के पीछे उददेश्य यह है कि नयी दिल्ली रेलवे स्टेशन पर भीड़ भाड़ को कम किया जाये ।

Salient Features of Central Railway Mainline Timetable w.e.f. 1st July 2010
http://203.176.113.182/CR/cr/hq/administration/Prel2010.630-MainLineTT.pdf

Sailent features of Western Zone New Time Table With Effect From 01/07/2010
http://203.176.113.182/WR/Tnewssubmit.jsp?newshead=1447

http://203.176.113.182/WR/Tnewssubmit.jsp?newshead=1448

SALIENT FEATURES OF NORTHERN RAILWAY TIME TABLE EFFECTIVE FROM 1.7.10

http://www.nr.indianrail.gov.in/nr/scripts/static/RecentReleasesDisplay.jsp?id=2668

Salient features of southern railway timetable

http://southernrailway.gov.in/sr/ptt10sf.pdf

Salient features of Eastern Railway timetable
http://img31.imageshack.us/img31/751/eradd1.png

HT (http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/rajasthan/Plusher-Palace-on-Wheels-rolls-out-this-season/Article1-564763.aspx)
With a new spa, gym, cuisines from around the world, latest upholstery and other modern amenities, one of the world's luxuries trains - The Palace on Wheels- is all set to roll out in a plusher avatar to woo international and domestic tourists.

The new look luxury train from Rajasthan would sport upgraded facilities and different and improved interiors along with other services which, according to official sources, were inevitable with other luxury trains like Maharaja Express, Indian Maharaja, Deccan Odyssey and Golden chariot plying in the country.

Along with PoW a second luxury train from the desert state - 'Royal Rajasthan on Wheels' (RRoW)- is also being upgraded to attract tourists and make their experience most enjoyable.

"Tourists would have option of a Dubai-like desert safari when the train halts at Jaisalmer. More varied food including Mexican, Thai and seafood will be served. The bar is also being upgraded and some of the world's best wines would be made available on the train, while interiors have also been upgraded to give a fresh look besides improving quality of existing services," Manjit Singh, Chairman and MD, Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC), told PTI.

"Currently both the trains - Palace on Wheels and Royal Rajasthan on Wheels are undergoing major revamp at cost of around Rs 2 crore. The PoW will start its journey this season from August while RRoW will be on track again from September," says Singh.

Facilities of spa and gym and upgraded interiors would also be present in the RRoW.

"We are planning an aggressive marketing campaign to promote both the trains and make these the most preferred by tourists, worldwide. There is competition with rising number of luxury trains in the country in the recent times, but we hope our distinguished trains would get good responses," he says.

At present reservations on the luxury trains are being done online with some tourists preferring to do so via tour operators. The RTDC however, is looking to make distribution channel more viable and systematic by appointing more agents and thereby increasing group and charter bookings.

The Palace on Wheels, which was adjudged recently as the fourth best among the top ten luxury trains of the world by the prestigious travel magazine Conde Nast is in profit of around Rs 9 crore.

However, the RROW introduced in 2009 has incurred a loss of around Rs 2 crore and Singh hopes that the RRoW would also register profits in the 2010-11.

TOI (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City/Nagpur/Howrah-Shirdi-train-via-city-in-new-railway-time-table/articleshow/6112789.cms)
NAGPUR: With new railway timetable coming into force across Indian Railway from Thursday, Nagpur Division of Central Railway has also affected a minor changes. A new weekly train is being introduced between Howrah and Shirdi thus giving city a direct connection to pilgrim centre.

The train number 2573 Shirdi-Howrah Express will leave Shirdi at 1.45 pm on Saturday and reach Howrah on Sunday at 7.30 pm. Similarly, train number 2574 will leave Howrah on Thursday at 2.35 pm and reach Shirdi at 8.30 pm on Friday. Demand for a direct train to Shirdi was long-pending as until now devotees had to alight at Manmad station for changing trains or take a bus. The frequency of the train may be increased looking into demand, said Y K Singh, PRO, Central Railway. Another new train has been introduced between Chhindwara and Gwalior. It will leave Chhindwara on Wednesdays and Saturdays and Gwalior on Tuesdays and Fridays. The passengers will also benefit from increase in frequency of 2295/2296 Bangalore-Patna Sanghamitra Express. The train, that passes through Nagpur, will now run daily. Similarly, the 2807/2808 Nizamuddin-Vishakhapatnam Express will run five days a week instead of three.

The railways has also speeded up 2860 Howrah-Mumbai Gitanjali Express by 10 minutes between Nagpur and Mumbai. It will now reach Mumbai at 9.20 pm instead of 9.30 pm. The 1396 Ballarshah-Wardha passenger has also been speeded up by 30 minutes. Singh informed that days of 2923/2924 weekly Indore-Nagpur Express have been revised. It will now leave Nagpur on Wednesday instead of Thursday.

From Indore it will leave on Tuesday instead of Wednesday. The South East Central Railway (SECR) has extended Gondia-Durg MEMU train up to Raipur from July 1, informs Pradeep Kumar, senior divisional commercial manager (SrDCM).

Source (http://www.dailypioneer.com/266238/Now-trains-set-to-run-on-gas.html)
Now, don’t get surprised seeing compressed natural gas (CNG) engines pulling trains! The Indian Railway is in the process of switching over to “cheaper and cleaner” CNG to power its diesel engines, which are used mostly in local trains in metropolitan cities.

The Indian Railways Organisation for Alternative Fuels (IROAF), a unit under the Railway Board, has called for proposals to convert 40 diesel-powered cars into compressed natural gas-run (CNG). The bids will be opened on July 7.

This work envisages supply of necessary kits for conversion of the 40 diesel engines and necessary modification and testing of the converted dual-fuel DEMU Diesel Power Car. The diesel-CNG technology would be designed in such a manner that minimal changes to the existing engines shall be required for its fitment.

Currently, 90 DEMU rakes are available with the Indian Railways. These are used in around 300 trains across the nation. “The fuel expenditure on Indian Railways is substantial and the ever-increasing price of diesel is putting extreme pressure on the financial resources, making it imperative to look for alternative, cheaper fuels. A small reduction in fuel consumption through use of alternative fuel, efficient engine and improved technology can result in substantial savings in fuel bills,” a senior railway official told The Pioneer.

The Indian Railways has to cough up approximately Rs 4,500 crore for the 2.3 billion litres of diesel consumed in running trains on diesel-propelled engines. With the recent hike in diesel prices, The Railways diesel bill is estimated to go up by at least 10 per cent (Rs 450 crore).

“There was an idea to approach the Government for keeping in abeyance the hike effected out in diesel for a couple of months. Since we do not want to hike either freight charges or passenger fares, the situation is taking a toll on us. However, we have decided to absorb the hike internally. But with indications that diesel pricing would go the petrol way and would eventually be decontrolled, our bill are only going to swell,” another official in the Ministry added.

While the Ministry officials are keeping their fingers crossed about the new engines, they admit that CNG has been identified as one of the alternative fuels having the advantage of being cheaper and environment-friendly. “So, the concept of retro fitment of CNG kit in the existing engines of DEMU without any major changes in this system is being taken up by the Indian Railways,” the Ministry official added.

The enthusiasm over operating CNG-propelled trains notwithstanding, the Railways Ministry officials have certain apprehensions about the new design. They fear that while a CNG engine would not slow down the speed of trains, it might impact the pick-up. Moreover, compressed natural gas is available only in limited cities.

Book meals along with rail tickets

New Delhi, Jul 1: Indian Railways now offers the passengers the option to book meals along with their ticket and the payment for food will be accepted only after the food is served.

The new 'book a meal' scheme provides passengers reserving births online on IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation) website, to place the order of their choice which will be duly served to them once they embark on their journey. The facility is for those who have fully confirmed their e-tickets.

Railways offer the delicacies ranging from masala dosa to egg and vegetable biryani. Packaged bottle drinking water, ketchup satchets etc can also be booked online. Book a meal option will be available for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The meals booked will be served strictly according to the service timings mentioned on the website.

Standard veg and non-veg meals and morning breakfast booked online will be served in a casserole.

Payment will be taken by pantry car staff on train only on successfully delivering the service, informed a Railway Ministry official. Once the meal has been booked, cancellation or modification will not be permitted.

Inorder to assess passenger's feedback about the new move, the service has been launched on a pilot basis in two trains, 2780 Goa Express and 2628 Karnataka Express.

Source:- http://news.oneindia.in/2010/07/01/book-meals-along-with-rail-tickets.html

Book meals along with rail tickets

New Delhi, Jul 1: Indian Railways now offers the passengers the option to book meals along with their ticket and the payment for food will be accepted only after the food is served.

The new 'book a meal' scheme provides passengers reserving births online on IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation) website, to place the order of their choice which will be duly served to them once they embark on their journey. The facility is for those who have fully confirmed their e-tickets.

Railways offer the delicacies ranging from masala dosa to egg and vegetable biryani. Packaged bottle drinking water, ketchup satchets etc can also be booked online. Book a meal option will be available for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The meals booked will be served strictly according to the service timings mentioned on the website.

Standard veg and non-veg meals and morning breakfast booked online will be served in a casserole.

Payment will be taken by pantry car staff on train only on successfully delivering the service, informed a Railway Ministry official. Once the meal has been booked, cancellation or modification will not be permitted.

Inorder to assess passenger's feedback about the new move, the service has been launched on a pilot basis in two trains, 2780 Goa Express and 2628 Karnataka Express.

Source:- http://news.oneindia.in/2010/07/01/book-meals-along-with-rail-tickets.html

Book your meals and get a cockroach free...courtesy Bharatiya Rail.

Indian Railways to set up two wind power plants

In a bid to cut down on rising power costs and carbon emissions, Indian Railways is turning to wind power. The behemoth is setting up two wind mill power plants with a target of generating 21 MW wind power by next year. "We have finalised plans for setting up two wind mill power plants in Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu at an estimated cost of Rs 140 crores. Both the plants will generate a total of 21 MW power," said a senior Railway Ministry official. The plants will be set up along the coastal belt of Tamil Nadu and in the desert area of Jaisalmer. Each plant would generate 10.5 MW wind power and cost about Rs 70 crore.
India's long coastline and vast desert expanses which are endowed with high wind power potentials are best suited for the wind energy generation projects. Besides reducing the electric consumption, the wind power will also earn us carbon credits, said the official. Railways consume 5 billion units of power a year. "We would supply the power to the grid and it would be adjusted against our power billing," said the official.
Railways are expecting the plants to be operational by next year. Railways have already made operational a 10.5 MW plant at Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu. "We had saved about Rs 8 crore on power bills due to this plant," said the official. Since wind power is eco-friendly, railways are expecting to earn about Rs 1 crore as carbon credits from the wind power ventures. The largest PSU with 14 lakh employees is going green by channelising its vast resources.
Source: The Times of India

Source (http://www.mydigitalfc.com/news/titagarh-wagon-acquires-afr-france-347)
Kolkata-headquartered Titagarh Wagon Ltd (TWL), one of the country’s leading wagon makers, has acquired the assets of IGF Industries-Arbel Fauvet Rail (popularly known as AFR), a leading European rail wagon maker and the only in France for an investment commitment of Euro 15 million (which includes working capital also). TWL which has made this acquisition through a wholly owned subsidiary in France (floated for this purpose) also has plans to change the name of the company, incorporating parts of the Indian name.

Disclosing this, J P Chowdhary, Chairman of TWL told newspersons here that in 2008 the French company had notched up a revenue of Euro 70 million and since then there have been some management problems. AFR’s unit in Northern France spread across 42 acre has a capacity of making upto 5000 wagons per annum. Even with a capacity utilization of 2000-3000 wagons (which is not a tall order), TWL can earn a revenue of Euro 90-100 million from its newly acquired French company.

AFR makes freight wagon, tank wagons, hopper wagons, special wagons, flat wagons, bogies, poly articulated wagons and shunting locomotives. The French company also has as many as 15 patents on various technology, which TWL is keen on leveraging and commercially exploiting by way of licensing those technologies at arms length.

“The acquisition is expected to have positive implications for our cost, technology and management competitiveness as we evolve from an Indian to global player. This will help us tapping not only the European market but global market as well. AFR has large number of patented designs of specialized wagons which will help the group to gain a leadership position in India,” Chowdhary said.

The French unit can also look at developing and patenting 25 tonne Axle load bogies which has great potential for the Indian market, particularly in the wake of the dedicated freight corridor.

TWL would also outsource large part of French company’s components making and fabrication jobs to India (India being a low cost sourcing destination), turning it into a win-win situation for both, Chowdhary said.

Source (http://desicritics.org/2010/07/09/132724.phphttp://desicritics.org/2010/07/09/132724.php)
Why can't we be little sophisticated, if not sober is all what I think whenever I travel by Indian Railways. When we are capable of sending an unmanned toy to the moon, calling it as the Chandrayaan and tout ourselves on the verge of manufacturing our indigenous Cryogenic engine, can't we think of a better way to give our loos a modernised look in our Railways? If not for comfort at least shouldn't we develop a better disposal mechanism, rather than making all our Railway tracks along with the platforms perhaps the largest and longest toilet network of the world?

Anyone who had travelled via our Railways would have some reservation in calling those obnoxious looking small cabins at the end of the boogies as toilets. A steel base with a hole down which would help you see the moving tracks below when the train is in motion is far from termed as a toilet. All what the patrons left to do is to spread out above that hole and drop down whatever they can. The quantity is never a concern, so does the location. Thanks to this legendary loo engineering even a blind man can spot the Railway station in any city as the aroma of fresh drops on the platform would hit your nose the moment you are anywhere near 200 meters of the station. The beauty that this natural artwork adds to our already filthy Railway stations is for anyone one to see and worth appreciating. But to amuse all our Railway authorities think we Indians are sober enough (even when we are travelling) to read the scribes written on the door advising individuals to refrain from the dirty work when the train is in stations. That's too much of an expectation when we are not even considerate to our constitution and flaunt it in every level that too openly to agree to some idiot's suggestion written on the door panel. I have seen entities give their bladders and bowels a lock and eagerly wait for the stations to come, so that they can do away with their dropping exercise without bothering for the unwanted jerk that a moving train provides. In fact the toilets are found mostly occupied on stations with few more in line in the wait list to contribute generously to the beauty of the platform.

Other than the platforms this loo mechanism works as a mayhem for the general populace of the city who might have got nothing to do with the moving train or the entity inside the loo. Every time the train passes over a bridge in the city area the bikers apply their brakes as hard as they can and stop few yards before the bridge - A part out of respect and another part out of self respect. Our trains might be painfully slow but the stuffs flying out of it are oppositely faster. Even our over bridges have adequate size strategically placed openings to let the drops go through them with ease ornamenting the unfortunate individual on the road who might not be aware of this trick. Just wondering why to have bridges ? Let there be the old fashioned level crossings as the traffic comes to a grinding halt whenever a train passes over the bridge on both side, much like the level crossings.

Our stride towards having the world's largest loo network was cut short when Mamta Didi suggested something called green (I always thought them to be yellow though. My mistake) loo. I am not sure how far green we became but the whole idea failed miserably. After the green thing was announced I happened to travel in one of the trains which was marked to have a green loo on experimental basis. More than my journey I was excited to have that honour of having a glance at that green loo. No sooner I entered the loo, I was disappointed to see the same steel base with a slightly bigger (chances of toddlers going down to the track below) hole. Is this the green thing (a bigger hole) Mamta Didi was talking about, I asked the attendant. I don't know what I got as a reply but for sure I was more confused than I were to begin with and had that sudden urge of relieving myself down that hole to the track below.

Keep this in mind, the elaboration is for the AC boogie toilets. How devastating our sleeper coach toilets are is any one's guess. Can't we think of someway of storing the unwanted stuff somehow and getting them disposed on stations in some civic way? Perhaps we are capable of finding water on moon surface but not brilliant enough to contain this water and last nights rotten Railway food extract from flying out from all directions of our Railway boogies. Till we get to that green loo thing it's better to have a deodorant bottle handy while on stations or if at all you see a train going over a bridge stay away from it and pray to God that the things flying out are not fast enough to splash your face from that distance and you look more civilized when you are back at your home.

LUCKNOW: As Mumbai grows vertically to accommodate its ever-increasing population, so could its lifeline, the railways. The Research Designs and Standards Organisation, the R&D wing of Indian Railways, has proposed double-decker local trains to carry more commuters.

RDSO director-general K B L Mittal said his organisation would prepare a design of a double-decker local and present it to the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) as well as both Central and Western Railways and check their feasibility.

A two-storeyed local was a better idea than simply adding to the number of coaches on local trains. The MRVC has already sent a proposal to the RDSO to study the feasibility of 18-coach trains.

Longer coaches carry more commuters but come with their own set of issues, like crowd dispersal. Huge changes also have to be made in existing infrastructure, like re-spacing of signals, increase in platform length and alteration in track alignment.

Double-decker coaches would only require changes in the coach design, Mittal said. He explained that in comparison to long-distance twin-deck coaches, those for local trains need more entry and exit points and wider stairs to allow easy access. "This will cut down the number of commuters that they would be able to carry by about 8-10%," he said, but pointed out that it would be offset as every two-storeyed coach has an increased capacity of 30%.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/City-Mumbai/Mumbai-locals-may-get-double-decker-coaches/articleshow/6153099.cms

Even as the blueprint for air-conditioned (AC) local trains for Mumbai are gathering dust, the railways are planning to run double-decker suburban trains to reduce commuter load. The plan, however, is still on the drawing board. KBL Mittal, Director General of the Research Design and Standards Organisation
(RDSO), Indian Railways, said there is a scope for double-decker suburban trains in Mumbai but the plan has to be studied first. “We will start preparing the design and study the feasibility of a double-decker train for Mumbai.”

Mittal said though a double-decker coach could result increasing the carrying capacity by 30 per cent, it would also involve changing the door structure, fitting staircases and doubling the number of doors — and these could bring down the carrying capacity by 8 to 10 per cent as there will be fewer seats.

Moreover, the railways will have to dedicate fixed entry and exit points because a double-decker train would halt at a station for less than 30 seconds, making it difficult for commuters to board and alight from the same door.

RDSO has prepared a prototype for a long-distance AC double-decker train and identified two routes — Mumbai-Ahmedabad and Howrah-Daund. The 11-coach AC chair car train has been manufactured at the Rail Coach Factory, Kaparthala.

While the seating capacity of each double-decker coach would increase from 72 to 105, the height of the train would increase by 100 mm from 4,677 mm. It will be on the lines of the double-decker Flying Rani and Valsad Express between Mumbai-Surat and Mumbai-Valsad respectively.

Another option the RDSO is looking at to reduce passenger load is increasing the number of coaches in a train from 15 to 18. On an average, 500 commuters travel in a single coach and after augmenting trains from nine-coach to 12-coach, the carrying capacity has increased by 30 per cent.

However, running 18-coach trains would mean re-spacing signaling systems, increasing the length of platforms and changing the track alignment.

Ten years ago, Western Railway had manufactured an AC coach at its Mahalaxmi workshop. The plan was to run it between Mumbai Central and Bandra, but the project was abandoned due to red tape. The Central Railway had also proposed to run an AC train between CST and Kalyan.

“Unless the doors are closed, local trains cannot have AC coaches. The number of commuters per coach will also reduce by 150,” said AK Gupta, executive director (EMU), RDSO.

Source:http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/mumbai/Double-decker-local-trains-in-city/Article1-570546.aspx

Even as the blueprint for air-conditioned (AC) local trains for Mumbai are gathering dust, the railways are planning to run double-decker suburban trains to reduce commuter load. The plan, however, is still on the drawing board. KBL Mittal, Director General of the Research Design and Standards Organisation
(RDSO), Indian Railways, said there is a scope for double-decker suburban trains in Mumbai but the plan has to be studied first. “We will start preparing the design and study the feasibility of a double-decker train for Mumbai.”

Source:http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/mumbai/Double-decker-local-trains-in-city/Article1-570546.aspx

forgot to add: "And after we prepare design for five years, study feasibility for ten years, the plans will collect dust for a decade before the bulb in our brains lights up again for feasibility report for triple decker trains."

“Unless the doors are closed, local trains cannot have AC coaches.” said AK Gupta, executive director (EMU), RDSO.

Source:http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/mumbai/Double-decker-local-trains-in-city/Article1-570546.aspx

:nuts:

Source (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Sports/Events-Tournaments/Commonwealth-Games/Enjoy-a-heritage-steam-loco-ride-during-Games/articleshow/6154397.cms)
NEW DELHI: How about a ride in a heritage train run by a steam locomotive during the Commonwealth Games?

Railways are planning to run a steam engine, manufactured in 1947, between Delhi and Rewari in Haryana during the Games beginning October 3.

"We are developing the steam loco shed at Rewari as a tourist spot and it will be ready before the Games. As per the plan we are exploring the possibilities of running a steam loco with four heritage coaches between Delhi and Rewari," a senior Railway Ministry official said.

It will take about two hours to cover the 80 km distance between Delhi and Rewari in the steam loco train with one or two operational stoppages.

There are about 10 heritage steam locomotives, including one manufactured in 1893, stationed at Rewari loco shed.

"We want to showcase these "old beauties" during the Games. The timings, tickets and other related matters are to be finalised," said the official.

A large number of visitors including foreigners are expected to come here during the Games. As per the plan, Railways will run the train during weekends.

"After reaching Rewari, the visitors will also have the opportunity to have small rides in these "old beauties" at the loco shed and we are trying to revive all these steam locos at the shed," he said.

Currently the loco shed is lying in a dilapidated state with not much activity.

Earlier, there was a proposal to run steam loco service in the capital's ring rail route during the Games. However, the official said, the idea is not feasible due to operational problems.

"We will definitely make the Rewari loco shed ready before the Games for visitors. There is an old charm about the steam locos and we are sure people will like to see them running," he said.

HT (http://www.hindustantimes.com/Duronto-express-between-Kolkata-and-sea-resort-Digha-soon/Article1-570844.aspx)
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday announced a new Duronto Express train between the metropolis and the seaside resort of Digha at the southern tip of West Bengal. "The fully air-conditioned train will take only about two hours to reach Digha and will be a boon to both tourists and the tourism industry at Digha," the minister said while inaugurating an express train to Digha from the industrial township of Asansol.

Duronto is a new concept in rapid passenger movement which came 41 years after the Rajdhani Express revolutionised train services between Delhi and major cities, she said adding the new multi-colour trains between metros were faster than the red and yellow locomotives.

Mon, Jul 12 05:52 AM
To ease crowding in suburban trains, a new move is on: Double-decker train coaches to carry more passengers. If it works out, the double decker experience won't be limited to BEST buses and suburban trains may have two-storey coaches. The Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO), Lucknow, is looking at double decker coaches to reduce crowding.

The Lucknow-based RDSO's first long-distance fully air-conditioned double decker train is ready, and is likely to run in the Mumbai-Ahmedabad and Howrah-Daund routes on a trial basis. It is being tested now.

"In 2011-12 fiscal, five to six more AC double decker outstation trains will be made. We will also make more non-AC double decker trains, which are still in use."

KBL Mittal, Director General and ex-officio Manager of RDSO, told reporters in Lucknow, "We will prepare a design of the local and present it to the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) and both the railways and see how they accept the plan after testing its feasibility. Having a two-storey local is better than augmenting locals from 15 to 18 coaches," added Mittal.

Incidentally MRVC has sent a proposal to the organisation to study the feasibility of 18-coach trains. Longer local trains have issues like dispersal of commuters, as well as change in infrastructure like re-spacing of signalling, length of platforms, change in track alignment.

Mittal said every double decker coach had as additional 30% capacity but in local trains this won't be so as the doors would be wider and thus capacity increase would be "less than 30%."

The DG said the present entries and exits would have to be increased as the 30-second halt would not be sufficient to let enough people enter and exit. Also the staircases would have to be wider to facilitate better and faster entry-exit of Mumbai's suburban traffic. The fully AC double decker train undergoing tests has 11 coaches and has been manufactured by the Railway Coach Factory, Kapurthala. The seats of each coach has increased from 72 to 105.

Ten years back, the Sinhagad Express between Mumbai and Pune was a double decker train.

On WR, the Flying Ranee from Mumbai Central to Surat and Mumbai-Valsad Express, have a few double decker coaches.

As in other long-distance trains, passenger safety to minimise danger in case of a crash, or crashworthiness, will be looked into in double decker local trains too. If a train crashes against any solid object, the internal damage is made minimal by buffering the end of each coach with rubber to absorb shock, and adding anti-telescoping features.

After RDSO nod for AC local design, next move awaited The design of a proposed air conditioned coach for the suburban section has been approved by the RDSO Lucknow, but it is waiting for the MRVC, the Central Railway and Western Railway to take it from the blueprint stage to implementation.

Over a year ago, Rajkamal Rao, MM, Railway Board had told The Indian Express that the Board had sent the design to RDSO for approval. RDSO has approved the design with some modifications.

AK Gupta, Executive Director(Passenger services and EMU), said the project has a few challenges like the door.

"Unless the doors are closed, suburban services cannot have AC coaches. The number of commuters per coach will have to be brought down by at least 150 from 500 now," Gupta said. RDSO officials were of the view there is a need to increase fares that have remained steady since 2006.

The increase in fuel prices had led to hike in road transport fares, which may attract a heavy passenger load to trains, they said adding thus railways should consider a fare hike. During discussion on the need of AC coaches for Mumbai, Gupta said the economics as well as population growth projection had to be borne in mind.

KBL Mittal, Director General and ex-officio Manager of RDSO, said, "Plying AC trains full-time is not an easy task and may not be feasible in view of the dense commuter load. But once Metro and Monorail start plying, railways can deduce the actual situation with regard to commuting capacity and train services utilisation. It is up to the Railways and the Maharashtra government to decide AC coach induction."

Around ten years ago an AC coach was made by the WR at the Mahalaxmi workshop converting one at an additional cost of Rs 17 lakh. It was run between Mumbai Central and Bandra for the media. The project was abandoned as certain permissions were not obtained. Another proposal to run an AC train on CR between CST and Kalyan, failed as it didn't get permission from the Railway Board. A hue and cry had also been raised then that there are not enough trains for the common man and the railways was wasting resources on the elite.

Around the same time, Nikhilesh Jain, the then DRM of WR had proposed to convert all first class compartments into AC as a value-added service. That proposal too did not see the light of the day.

Source:http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100712/804/tnl-to-ease-rush-plans-for-double-decker.html

Mamata push for rail coach unit
Titagarh Wagons, Texmaco In Fray
Udit Prasanna Mukherji | TNN


Kolkata: With an eye on the assembly elections next year, railways minister Mamata Banerjee is pushing ahead with the Kanchrapara railway coach project she announced in her railway budget this year.
Last month, Mamata’s ministry issued a global request for qualification (RFQ) for the project, setting July 24 as the deadline for submission of requests by private companies interested in executing the project. “We shall complete the formalities as quick as possible once the submission is over,” sources in ministry said.
The country’s leading wagon manufacturers like Titagarh Wagons and Texmaco have already shown an interest in the joint venture project, it was learnt. Titagarh Wagons director Umesh Chowdhary said, “We have already started manufacturing EMU coaches in our factory in West Bengal and will be keen to participate in the Kanchrapara project.”
Texmaco CEO Ramesh Maheshwari said it is interested in the railway coach project. “We have set up a team to work on that project,” he added.
Both Titagarh and Texmaco are in JVs with foreign players to manufacture modern wagons. Titagarh has a JV with FreightCar America and Texmaco with United Rail of Australia. The Indian companies indicated that many foreign companies are willing to join hands with them to manufacture coaches, considering the demand in India.
The RFQ published by railways says that the ministry will form a JV for setting up a state-of-the-art EMU, mainline electrical multiple unit (MEMU) and metro coaches unit on 150 acres in Kanchrapara. Incidentally, MEMU is used for inter city trains.
“It will be a 74:26 JV. The partner will have 74% stake and the railways will have the remaining 26%,” sources added. As per the RFQ, the JV company will be required to supply a combined number of 500 coaches (EMU, MEMU and Metro coaches) to railways every year.
“This will be the first unit in eastern region to manufacture MEMU and metro coaches. A number of new metro projects are in the pipeline in Mumbai, Hyderabad as well as the East-West Metro in Kolkata. Though some of the projects are being implemented by private companies, they can buy from the JV unit rather than going for imports,” sources added.

forgot to add: "And after we prepare design for five years, study feasibility for ten years, the plans will collect dust for a decade before the bulb in our brains lights up again for feasibility report for triple decker trains."

:lol:

Source (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/rlys-to-use-aadhaar-authentication/400132/)
Rlys to use Aadhaar authentication

Indian Railways hopes to offer better services to its passengers through the use of the unique identification 'Aadhaar' numbers —the authentication provided by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

“We are in talks with the railways, which have been pioneers in the use of IT, and we think there are many applications where Aadhaar authentication can be used to deliver better services to the people. We have just held preliminary meetings with the Railway Board,” said UIDAI chairman Nandan Nilekani, on the sidelines of an event organised by the Centre for Railway Information Systems here today.

Nilekani said the unique numbers can be used by the Railways for its more than 1.4 million employees in areas of pension payments, authenticating employee family members when they visit a health care facility or for railway receipts when goods are sent. The Indian Railways run about 11,000 trains every day including freight and passenger vehicles.

Almost one million passengers reserve their berths and seats through the passenger reservation system, while close to 14 million passengers are catered to daily by the unreserved ticketing system.

“For us, the Aadhaar adoption in public service application is a very important goal and we look forward to working with the Railways on that,” he added.

Emphasising the need for roping in the right kind of talent for longer duration to evolve sustainable models, he said the focus should be to create a broad set of capabilities in the system so that the right people are available to strategic projects in a continuous manner.

“In the coming decades, technology-enabled projects in governance will become more and more pervasive. This will help us to take the projects to a certain level of sustainability in a very short period of time,” said Nilekani.

No personal identity information needed
To get Aadhaar numbers from the UIDAI, citizens will not have to give their personal identity information, according to the authority’s Aadhaar Authentication Application Programming Interface.

The Aadhaar Authentication is the process wherein the Aadhaar number, along with other attributes, including biometrics, are submitted online to the Central Identities Data Repository for verification on the basis of the information or data or documents available with it. Aadhaar authentication service only responds with a “yes/no” and no personal identity information is returned as part of the response.

THESTATESMAN (http://www.thestatesman.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=335138&catid=35)
19 July 2010
Press Trust of India

NEW DELHI, 19 JULY: The collision between the speeding Sealdah-bound Uttarbanga Express and Vanachal Express at Sainthia station in Bhirbhum is the second tragedy on tracks in West Bengal in the past two months. At least 51 persons died today.
On 28 May this year, Naxalites engineered the derailment of Howrah-Kurla Jyaneshwari Express in West Midnapore district, killing at least 148 people.
Below is a chronology of major train accidents in the country since 2000:
3 December, 2000: Forty-six killed and more than 130 injured as Howrah-Amritsar Mail rams into a derailed goods train between Sarai Banjara and Sadhugarh in Punjab.
22 June, 2001: Forty people killed when the Mangalore-Chennai Mail falls into Kadalundi river near Kozhikode in Kerala.
5 January, 2002: 21 killed and 41 injured when Secundarabad-Manmad express train rams into a stationary goods train at Ghatnandur station in Maharashtra.
23 March, 2002: Seven injured when 13 bogies of Lokmanya Tilak Superfast Express from Patna to Mumbai derails near Narsinghpur in Madhya Pradesh.
12 May, 2002: Twelve killed when the New Delhi-Patna Shramjeevi Express derails in Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh.
4 June, 2002: Thirty-four killed when the Kasgunj Express rams into a bus at a rail crossing.
9 September, 2002: 100 passengers killed and 150 hurt when a bogie of Howrah-Delhi Rajdhani Express plunged into Dhave river in Bihar's Aurangabad district.
10 September, 2002: 120 killed when the Kolkata-New Delhi Rajdhani Express derails over a bridge in Bihar.
15 May, 2003: Thirty eight people killed and 13 injured when three coaches of Amritsar-bound Frontier Mail catches fire.
22 June, 2003: 53 killed and 25 injured when Karwar-Mumbai Central Holiday Special train derails after crossing Vaibhavwadi Station in Sindhudurg district in Maharashtra.
2 July, 2003: A train engine and two adjoining coaches falls off a bridge in Warangal, killing 18 people.
27 February, 2004: 30 people killed when Guwahati-bound Kanchenjunga Express collides with a truck at an unmanned level-crossing in West Bengal's Dinajpur district.
15 December, 2004: 34 persons, including 11 women, die and about 50 injured when Ahmedabad-bound Jammu Tawi Express collides head-on with a local train about 40 km from Jalandhar in Punjab.
18 August, 2006: Two carriages catch fire on Chennai-Hyderabad Express near Secundrabad railway station.
9 November, 2006: About 40 dead and 15 injured in a West Bengal rail accident.
1 December, 2006: A portion of a 150-year-old bridge being dismantled collapsed over a passing train in Bihar's Bhagalpur district, killing 35 and injuring 17.
14 November, 2009: Delhi-bound Mandore Express derails with tracks piercing its AC compartment, leaving seven passengers dead and more than 60 injured in Bassi town near Jaipur.
21 October, 2009: Twenty-two people killed and 26 injured when Goa Express rams into Mewar Express at Banjana on the Mathura-Vrindavan section of the Northern Railway in Uttar Pradesh.
2 January, 2010: Three accidents involving five trains takes place in Uttar Pradesh owing to dense fog conditions, killing 15 people.
16 January, 2010: Three people die and around a dozen are injured when two express trains ~ Kalindi Express and Shram Shakti Express ~ collide in thick fog in Uttar Pradesh.

ITS A CASE OF TOTAL SABOTAGE....HERE ARE MY REASONS :

1) Vnanchal express chain was pulled.....y wud someone do that in the middle of night??? the chilli sacks unloading story might be just a cover up to hide the fault in chain pulling....
2) Vnanchal express had not left the platform....so the automatic digitally controlled signal (which are relaively new) will definitely not turn green for uttarbanga exp to arrive.....then y did it arrive?? driver MAY have become unconcious and failed to notice signal...but this is absurd since 5 minutes ago he had stopped the train......EVEN IF HE FAILED TO NOTICE SIGNAL, TRAIN WOULD AUTOMATICALLY BE DIVERTED TO OTHER TRACK DUE TO INTERLOCKING.......SO DEFINITELY IT IS A CASE OF SABOTAGE........ someone tampered with signal system to override the interlock and set signal to green............does any doubt remain????
3) is it mere coincidence that jnaneswari case took place 2 days before civic polls and this took 2 days before trinamool's mega celebration day on 21st july????

ITS A CASE OF TOTAL SABOTAGE....HERE ARE MY REASONS :

1) Vnanchal express chain was pulled.....y wud someone do that in the middle of night??? the chilli sacks unloading story might be just a cover up to hide the fault in chain pulling....
2) Vnanchal express had not left the platform....so the automatic digitally controlled signal (which are relaively new) will definitely not turn green for uttarbanga exp to arrive.....then y did it arrive?? driver MAY have become unconcious and failed to notice signal...but this is absurd since 5 minutes ago he had stopped the train......EVEN IF HE FAILED TO NOTICE SIGNAL, TRAIN WOULD AUTOMATICALLY BE DIVERTED TO OTHER TRACK DUE TO INTERLOCKING.......SO DEFINITELY IT IS A CASE OF SABOTAGE........ someone tampered with signal system to override the interlock and set signal to green............does any doubt remain????
3) is it mere coincidence that jnaneswari case took place 2 days before civic polls and this took 2 days before trinamool's mega celebration day on 21st july????

You have some very good points. Maybe you should speak to the CBI or CID.

Railways to take over catering services from IRCTC

In a major setback to the IRCTC, Railways have decided to strip the PSU of its catering responsibilities in Rajdhani, Duronto, Shatabdi and all other mail and express trains.

The Catering Policy-2010 finalised by Railways have clearly spelt out that "Railways shall progressively take over management of all mobile catering services including base kitchens, pantry cars and all food stalls in railway premises".

At present, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Ltd (IRCTC), a Railway subsidiary, is responsible for serving food in about 300 trains including in premier trains like Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi.

With this move, IRCTC will forgo at least Rs 200 crore catering business, said a senior IRCTC official.

Railway Board will now determine the menu and tariff for the standard meals, breakfast, tea, coffee and catering charges for meals, etc., which are included in the fare. PTI News

Talks with Rlys soon for resumption of night trains

A meeting with the Railways will take place soon for resumption of night running of passenger trains in Jharkhand, a top police official said today.

The running of passenger trains have been suspended since the May 28 Jnaneswari Express disaster in West Bengal.

"We will definitely discuss specific problems being faced by the Railways to restore night services," Director General of Police Niyaz Ahmed told reporters here.

A meeting with the Railways has already taken place, he said.

A Quick Response Force comprising the police, Government Railway Police and Railway Protection Force has been functioning during bandhs called by Maoists as passenger trains passed through about 2400 sq km of deep jungles in the state, he said. PTI News

IRCTC’s wings clipped, railway board to take over catering
| TNN

Imagine cruising at nearly 100 km per hour, sinking your teeth into your favourite biryani and washing it down with a cup of espresso. All from well-known brands. Sounds incredible? Not if Mamata Banerjee has her way.

She has quietly chalked out a new catering policy for the railways that should make the on-board culinary experience something to remember. The policy, announced on the Indian Railways website on Wednesday, will be unveiled in Delhi on Friday.

The biggest change: on-board catering is being taken away from the hands of Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited (IRCTC).Now, the zonal railways will be responsible for mobile catering on trains, quality and accountability.

The move is aimed at dismantling cartels in the sector. However, the timing has raised eyebrows since the ministry has been in the eye of a storm following a spurt in train accidents over the last few months.

Before designing the new policy, Mamata had ordered a survey of the quality of food on trains after a flurry of complaints that the fare was bad and prepared in unhygienic conditions. The survey reportedly found that IRCTC was being run by a cartel of contractors, mostly from Bihar, whose only focus was profit.

In the new scheme of things, private caterers with extremely strong brands will be invited to take up mobile catering, though a strict control on pricing and quality will be kept by the zonal head (the general manager). The new policy makes it clear that the railways will not keep profit in mind.

Mamata decided to frame the new policy since the earlier one — drafted during her predecessor Lalu Prasad’s tenure in 2005 — was fraught with problem, say sources. Under the new policy, the railway board will determine the menu and tariff for standard meals, breakfast, tea, coffee and catering charges for meals. Zonal railways will determine menu and tariff for all other items and Jan Ahaar outlets.

Though IRCTC is being completely removed from mobile catering, the ministry has allowed it to run food plazas, food courts and fast food units. However, the agency will not be allowed to award fresh contracts to caterers or renew any existing ones. These decisions will be handled solely by the zonal railways. “Cooking on trains is extremely hazardous. Moreover, pantry cars lack hygiene and are the breeding grounds of cockroaches and rats. The new policy makes it clear that all food to be served on trains will be prepared in base kitchens and arranged and packaged in trays, which can only be warmed up on the train,” said chairman of the Passenger Services Committee, Derek O’Brien.

Hotel management graduates will be brought in as quality supervisors. The new policy also stresses on regional Janta Meals to be served from Jan Ahaar outlets. So if luchi aludom is what constitutes Janta Meal in Bengal, it should be idli or upma in the South and vada-pav in the West. There will also be a system for passengers to complain through SMSs and phone calls.

However, many within the ministry have questioned the move. They argue that if IRCTC failed, how could the railway board and zonal railways — whose primary task is safe travel for millions of passengers — could ensure better quality food and dismantle cartels.

IRCTC could lose Rs 200 crore from the catering business. It will now be left to sale e-ticket and i-ticket, running Rail Neer and managing food plaza, food courts and fast food units.

To avoid any disruption in services, the new policy says, “all such contracts being managed by IRCTC, on expiry of the contract period, will be awarded by the zonal railways”.

FRESH FLAVOUR

MOTIVE

1. Dismantle cartels in the sector 2. Ensure cheaper and good quality food for passengers 3. Ensure better hygiene

MODE

1. Strict control on pricing and quality
2. Hotel management graduates will be roped in as quality supervisors
3. Railway board will determine the menu and tariff for on-board fare
4. IRCTC can run food plazas, food courts and fast food units but cannot award fresh contracts to caterers or renew existing ones. It stands to lose Rs 200 crore

Imagine cruising at nearly 100 km per hour, sinking your teeth into your favourite biryani and washing it down with a cup of espresso. All from well-known brands. Sounds incredible?

incredible? only since we have such low expectations of IR

^^ Yes, everything is "incredible" by IR now a days.

Anyway, just wait for a "fried cockroach" in your "branded biryani" :D..

that quiz master must have thrown a question or two at the poor IRCTC guys which they couldn't have answered. This is how he came up with that report :lol:

wish we had something like this.
if we really want to expand fast then this machine is a must.
qFE8nmKpmXY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFE8nmKpmXY

New Delhi Railway Station Upgrade:
HT article:

http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/2870/ndls.th.jpg (http://a.imageshack.us/img294/2870/ndls.jpg)

^^ The article above says August which is hardly a few week away. What is the status of this building as of today.

A relative of mine recently traveled on the Shatabdi. The train was a complete disaster. Seats in front would not fold down properly, the whole look of the cabin area was dirty and unkempt. The train looked liked it went through a bomb blast, poor metal finish, horrible paint, filled with filth all over. The food was even worse, hardly edible. Indian public does not deserve this kind of service.

Mamta is a complete disaster. WTF is she doing as a minister. The current IR operations needs to be nuked forthwith. Maybe Civil aviation Minister Praful Patel should be given the railways in addition to civil aviation. Someone need to crack the whip and shake up this moribund organization. I don't believe anyone works an honest day of work in IR. No maintenance, no service, one big pig sty operation.

most of IR has nothing to with mamta. it was a disaster much before she became a minister

certain rail lines such as mathrua-achnera, ratangarh-degana, ratangarh-sadulpur are now completed after gauge conversion but still pending for inuaguration to take place.
no train services are operating. Do mamta has some time to spare for their official opening.

Private sector entities will now be able to construct, operate and maintain railway tracks in the country under a new policy framed by the ministry to promote investment in railway infrastructure projects. Though private companies now operate railway linkages to a few ports or have captive rail systems, it is for the first time that large-scale private operations in freight are being planned.

A senior official at the ministry said: "Resource crunch is delaying the execution of network capacity expansion projects of the railways. The R3i (Railways' Infrastructure for Industry Initiative) policy has been formulated to tap alternative sources of funding to create additional rail transport capacity and augment rail share in freight traffic."

Under the policy, private companies would be able to build tracks, 20 km or longer, adopting one of the four business models proposed by the railways. They are "full contribution-apportioned earning model", "cost-sharing-freight rebate model", "special purpose vehicle (SPV) model" and "private line model". The companies would be allowed to develop logistics-related activities and stations on the project line.


The ministry, however, has included a rider to keep connectivity to coal and iron ore mines, directly or indirectly, away from these companies. This is so because the railways get 55 per cent of its total freight revenue from moving coal and iron ore. The total freight revenue targeted for this year is Rs 62,489 crore.

In all models, except in the private line model, land for building new lines will be acquired by the railways. Funds for land acquisition have to be paid upfront to the railways by the private companies. The ownership of land and tracks would vest with the railways.

In the cost-sharing-freight-rebate model, the railways and private companies would enter into a cost-sharing agreement to construct the proposed line, the contribution of the private player being not less than 50 per cent of the total project cost. The railways would take up construction, operation and maintenance of the new tracks. The private player, in lieu of investments made, would be entitled to a freight rebate varying between 10 and 12 per cent on incremental traffic moved on the line for a maximum period of 10 years.

Alternatively, the private players can contribute fully in developing and maintaining a proposed stretch for 25 years. The interested party would receive earnings from traffic on the line, except for the operating and maintenance costs incurred by the railways. The railways would impose a fee of two per cent on the gross earnings of the partner's share for the first 10 years of operations and four per cent for the remaining 15 years. Expenses incurred to acquire the land would be refunded at the end of the concession period.

An SPV, with 26 per cent equity share of the railways, can also be formed to execute a new line project. Under this model, the SPV shall be granted a concession to construct, operate and maintain the line. It shall be granted a share in the revenues generated on the line for 30 years. For port connectivity projects, as much as 100 per cent of the earnings generated, apart from the operational costs incurred by the railways, would be forwarded to the consortium.

Private parties can build a new line on non-railway land and claim revenues generated on the line for 30 years under the "private line model". Operational and maintenance expenses of the railways would be deducted from the gross revenues in this case. Besides, the railways would levy a fee on gross earnings of two per cent between 5 and 10 years, three per cent between 10 and 20 years and four per cent for the remaining period on the private entity.

Indian Railways, at present, has 110 new line projects in various stages of development, the balance funds required for the completion of which are estimated to be Rs 60,000 crore. Officials at the ministry said severe scarcity of funds had led to spreading of resources thinly over a large number of projects. This was leading to considerable time and cost over-runs.

Sharmistha Mukherjee

Source: Rediff.com

After a long time, rediff.com is having some sensible information.

Railways ask zones to increase coaches, rationalise quotas

Indian railways have dire*cted the zonal offices to bo*ost passenger earnings by incre*asing coaches in some trains, rationalise quotas and control revenue leakages.

This directive has come at a meeting the top railway officials had with chief general managers (CGMs) on Thursday. The officials discussed ways and means to fund large infrastructure projects.

The railways have set a target of making Rs 26,127 crore through passenger tr*avel in the current financial year. Given the modest per*formance in 2009-10, Rail*ways is not taking any chan*ces this year. As against the targeted Rs 24,057 cro*re passenger earnings in 2009-10, it reported net collections at Rs 23,751 crore, 1.2 per cent lower than targets.

“There were three asp*ects of the discussions to*day. First is the supply side. We have been asked to add more coaches to trains, rati*onalise our quotas and ma*ke certain changes in tatkal scheme. Secondly, there are issues relating to leakage of revenues for which a proper monitoring system needs to be put in place. And, third is to improve customer interface,” said a CCM that was present at the meeting.

Railways have also asked zonal offices to prepare data reflecting earning from ea*ch train. “Once, we have ea*rning per train, we can evaluate what and where do we need to take measures to push up our earnings,” another railway official said.

Source: www.mydigitalfc.com

Not exactly an unbiased article, but not entirely without reason...

Pilot project of internet on train: Howrah-Delhi replaces Mumbai-Ahmedabad Shatabdi Express (http://gujaratmoney.com/2010/07/29/trial-run-for-internet-facility-conducted-on-mumbai-ahmedabad-shatabdi-express/)

Though trial run for provision of Internet facility had been conducted in Mumbai-Ahmedabad Shatabdi Express, the Indian Railway has decided to introduce pilot project for the same in Delhi-Howrah Rajdhani Express, obviously because the central railway minister Mamata Banerjee is from West Bengal, and she is known for doing much for her state with her ministry as tool.

On Thursday, central minister of state for railway Shri K.Muniappa in written answer to Lok Sabha said that a satellite based system with Wi-Fi distribution in coaches was tried on experimental basis and was found to be technically feasible in Mumbai-Ahmedabad Shatabdi Express. However at the same time in same answer Muniappa said that a pilot project for internet facility will be introduced in three rakes of Delhi-Howrah Rajdhani Express. He said this has been considered and has been included in the Railway Budget 2010-11.

This clearly indicates that the project of internet in train that originated from Ahmedabad-Mumbai Shatabdi express was then moved to West Bengal based Howrah-Delhi train, probably because the central minister of railway belongs to the state of West Bengal.

HINDU (http://www.thehindu.com/arts/history-and-culture/article544272.ece)


The world's oldest steam locomotive is all set to chug again and thrill train lovers in a Heritage Run planned in Chennai soon. The 155-year-old ‘Express Loco' built by Kitson Thomson and Hewitson Leeds, United Kingdom, was used in the erstwhile East Indian Railway till 1909.

Thereafter, it remained parked in Jamalpur and Howrah as a piece of exhibit for over 100 years. The ‘Express Loco' is older than the ‘Fairy Queen'. The two locomotives have the history of hauling trains of troops from Howrah to Raneegunge to quash the uprisings in the 1857 mutiny.

The ‘Express Loco' christened ‘EIR 21' was brought by road to the Perambur Loco Works four months ago. A special team headed by the Southern Railway Chief Mechanical Engineer V. Carmelus took up the challenge of reviving the lost glory.

The 130-horse power locomotive was dismantled for undertaking corrosion repairs. Experts from the Goldenrock Workshop, Tiruchi, Integral Coach Factory, Chennai and Perambur Carriage Works were roped in to rehabilitate the world's oldest locomotive.

“The only major replacement was the injector. We have introduced air brakes as the vacuum braking system is not in vogue. The steam-fired locomotive can haul at least four coaches comfortably,” Mr. Carmelus, who flagged off a trial run at the Perambur Loco Works on Thursday, told The Hindu.

Royapuram to Avadi

The Heritage Run is planned between Royapuram, the oldest railway station building in Southern Railway, and Avadi. “Depending upon the response, we may consider operating the Heritage Run at periodic intervals. It is a matter of pride for us…I am sure children and many youths who have not seen or enjoyed travelling in trains hauled by steam engines will love to be part of the Heritage Run,” Mr. Carmelus said.

He said the ‘Fairy Queen' numbered ‘EIR 22' that was stationed at the National Rail Museum in New Delhi was also revived by the Perambur Loco Works in 1996. The next year, it started hauling tourist trains between New Delhi and Alwar.

Explaining the salient features of ‘Express Loco', Mr. Carmelus said it had a coal capacity of one tonne and two water tanks of 3,000 litres capacity each.

The total weight of the locomotive is 40 tonnes and it can run at a maximum speed of 40 kmph.

^^
World's oldest steam locomotive to chug again

http://a.imageshack.us/img31/6673/31thlocomotivephot15412.jpg
GLIMPSES OF A GLORIOUS ERA: The world's oldest steam locomotive on a trial run at the Perambur Loco Works in Chennai on Thursday.
The ‘Express Loco' (EIR 21) is older than the ‘Fairy Queen' (EIR 22)

TOI (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Worlds-oldest-commercial-meter-gauge-is-history/articleshow/6239375.cms)
Not much goes on at Garhi-Harsaru or Farukhnagar.The first railway station gets some passengers,has a container depot next to it and had served as a South African station for Richard Attenborough's Gandhi;Farukhnagar,not even that.No one would suspect that the two unremarkable,sleepy stations are,in fact,steeped in railway history.

After the Delhi-Rewari main line was converted to broad gauge,the two stations in Gurgaon district had between them the world's oldest commercial metre-gauge track.It's gone now.Replaced by broad gauge,the branch line's rails and everything that held them in place are up for auction and will be recycled.

"Lord Dalhousie was in favour of broad gauge," says Vikas Singh,rail enthusiast,historian and philatelist."But by 1868,quicker construction was required to move soldiers,carry relief during famines.Metre gauge was officially accepted in 1871." Opened for use in February 1873,this branch was used to transport salt from Farukhnagar and Sultanpur to Delhi.Passenger trains began running on it post 1947.

The project of gauge conversion began in the late '90s.But the branch line from Garhi-Harsaru to Farukhnagar,12.27 km away,remained untouched till June 2008.The original wood sleepers from this freshly uprooted track are stacked on the side - some used to fence off the lot - as is every pin (called a 'dog spike' for the shape of its head).In May 2010,a batch of rails from this track was auctioned to scrap dealers;another set that will go under the hammer waits at Farukhnagar.

"Metre gauge had to go ultimately," says Ashwani Lohani,who has served as director of the Rail Museum,"This was a very large network,almost as large as broad gauge at one time.Personally,I don't think it had as much heritage value as the narrow gauge,which was much rarer and has been preserved." Singh,also a marketing professional,had written in a 2004 article that the "historical route" could've been marketed.But the track and the stations with their quaint buildings receded from public memory.

In 1981,though,Garhi-Harsaru saw some excitement when Richard Attenborough and Ben Kinsley arrived to film Gandhi.The screen version of the seminal incident in Gandhi's life - being unceremoniously off-loaded from a first class coach in South Africa - was filmed here over a month.A temporary shed in front of the station building was all it took to convert the Garhi-Harsaru station of 1981 into the Pietermaritzburg one from 1893.Shooting over,the place regained its langour;the 'temporary' shed that lasted over two decades was demolished two-three years ago during a general makeover.

The centre of activity shifted from the century-old building to a new one next to it.The two-roomed colonial structure is now storage space housing dusty furniture,papers and a generator.The platforms were raised,solar panels installed and the most drastic change of all: the metre gauge lines were discontinued.

"Mere saamne tha aur mere saamne ukhara gaya,(it was there in front of me and it got uprooted,too,in front of me)'' says UC Jain,64,wistfully.Jain served 26 years as trackman on that line,retiring in 2006.The metre gauge track was ageing;he changed the speed at which trains could run on it."I reduced it first from 50 km per hour to 30 km per hour,then to 20 km per hour.The track was weak;the wooden sleepers were decayed and in places cracked," he says.With gauge conversion,time is saved,carrying capacity has increased and revenue losses during the change are being recovered,he says.

As old as the line,the Officer's Rest House,with chimneys and arched verandah,is intact and as delightfully old-world on the outside as it is crassly modern - ugly tiles,uglier furniture - inside.It is unoccupied except for the simian population that's taken over its drive and neat lawn.

No train chugs into Farukhnagar.The new track is yet to be declared ready for use and the station itself is being modernised with raised platforms,new benches and electricity.Even during Jain's tenure,they made do with lamps.But despite the upgrading,the tiny station - quiet,lonely with open fields and peacocks for company - looks like a stage-set from a period film.The station building appears to have sunk into the ground after the raising of platforms;rails from the metre gauge track of 1887,1894 vintage,the last vestiges of a historic line,are stored on the side for auctioning.

Jain doesn't begrudge the efforts to replace what he had guarded."Change is better.Metre gauge was prone to derailment.Broad gauge is much safer," he says gamely,walking along the track to the old brick shed where the engine (first steam,later diesel) was parked.Within striking distance,he realises it's gone;huge chunks of debris mark the spot,the pattern of bricks showing which parts had formed the arches."It's history now," says Jain,a little jolted by the scene."What was there has been dismantled and to tell the story,I'm here."

But a pair of desolate gang huts on the other side of the tracks - dark,vegetation growing out of walls - is still standing.Supporting their stone roofs are the rails,silent reminders of a time gone with the wind.

''Mother Express'' to be launched on Aug 26
PTI (http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/mother-express-to-be-launched-on-aug-26/194494.html)
Kolkata, Aug 2 (PTI) The Railways will introduce a new train, Mother Express, named after Mother Teresa on August 26 to mark her birth centenary. "We have decided to launch the new train after Mother Teresa as a tribute to her on occasion of her birth centenary," Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said here today. Banerjee said that the coaches of the train would be painted in blue, the trademark border of the habit worn by the order she founded. The route of the train would be announced later, but it would touch important destinations in the country, she said.PTI PKC SBR PB PC

Hello everyone,

Exciting news for high speed rail in India. It has been released a RFP for consultancy services for the high speed rail corridor between the cities of Delhi, Agra, Lucknow, Varanasi-Patna.

In pursuance to the objective of introduction of High Speed Passenger Railway in India, Ministry of Railways, Government of India has decided to appoint Consultants to prepare Pre-Feasibility study report to evaluate the financial viability & technical feasibility of construction, maintenance and management of facilities on each of following High Speed Passenger Railway Corridors through Public Private Partnership (PPP), among other implementation formats:

a) Pune- Mumbai- Ahmedabad
b) Delhi- Chandigarh – Amritsar
c) Delhi – Agra-Luknow-Varanasi-Patna.
b) Haldia – Howrah.
c) Hyderabad – Dornakal – Vijayawada – Chennai.
d) Chennai -Bangalore - Coimbatore - Ernakulam

Pre-fasibility study for Pune- Mumbai- Ahmedabad section has already been completed. Pre-feasibility study for Delhi- Chandigarh – Amritsar corridor is under finalisation.

The feasibility study for Pune- Mumbai- Ahmedabad section was recently carried out with the help of technical experts of two european firms, Systra of France and Italferr of Italy. Rail India Technology and Engineering Services (RITES) cooperated with these two firms during the feasibility study

Source:http://pppinfraindia.blogspot.com/2010/08/high-speed-rail-in-india-rfp-for.html

Lets see.

Hello everyone,

Exciting news for high speed rail in India. It has been released a RFP for consultancy services for the high speed rail corridor between the cities of Delhi, Agra, Lucknow, Varanasi-Patna.

In pursuance to the objective of introduction of High Speed Passenger Railway in India, Ministry of Railways, Government of India has decided to appoint Consultants to prepare Pre-Feasibility study report to evaluate the financial viability & technical feasibility of construction, maintenance and management of facilities on each of following High Speed Passenger Railway Corridors through Public Private Partnership (PPP), among other implementation formats:

a) Pune- Mumbai- Ahmedabad
b) Delhi- Chandigarh – Amritsar
c) Delhi – Agra-Luknow-Varanasi-Patna.
b) Haldia – Howrah.
c) Hyderabad – Dornakal – Vijayawada – Chennai.
d) Chennai -Bangalore - Coimbatore - Ernakulam

Pre-fasibility study for Pune- Mumbai- Ahmedabad section has already been completed. Pre-feasibility study for Delhi- Chandigarh – Amritsar corridor is under finalisation.

The feasibility study for Pune- Mumbai- Ahmedabad section was recently carried out with the help of technical experts of two european firms, Systra of France and Italferr of Italy. Rail India Technology and Engineering Services (RITES) cooperated with these two firms during the feasibility study

Source:http://pppinfraindia.blogspot.com/2010/08/high-speed-rail-in-india-rfp-for.html

^^ Hopefully this will see the light of the day.

Does anybody know which companies carried out the feasibility studies for the Delhi- Chandigarh – Amritsar corridor?


Thanks

RVNL???

^^ Hopefully this will see the light of the day.

the haldia howrah line will be expensive because they are going to switch to Sealdah-haldia line and then they will have to build a bridge over hooghly. can't wait for that. its going to have to be a suspension bridge to allow for ship movements.

RVNL is a government enterprise, but I guess there is a private firm carrying the preliminary works...isn´t there?


Have a nice day

http://pppinfraindia.blogspot.com

SOURCE (http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Neral-Matheran-misses-world-heritage-site-target/655167/)
The plans of the Indian Railways to get UNESCO world heritage status for Matheran Light Railway (MLR) and thus all hill railways in India has crashed as it failed to make it to the list.

The Darjeeling Railway, the Kangra Valley Railway, Nilgiri Mountain Railway are already on the list.

MLR was built between 1901 and 1907 by Abdul Hussein Adamjee Peerbhoy, at a cost of Rs 16 lakh. It is about 19.97 kms long and the tracks are 0.61 metres wide. The track runs from Neral to Matheran, in Raigad’s Sahaydri mountain range. “We are yet to know the reason behind the non-inclusion of the MLR, as the delegation is yet to return,” said an officer from the railway board. The official, however, added that the recent controversy created by the Peerbhoys must have led to the non-inclusion of the site in the list.

The Peerbhoys have been demanding that Matheran station be renamed after Sir Abdul Adamjee Peerbhoy. “Although this year Neral-Matheran rail could not be considered for inscription as a world heritage site by the UNESCO, the railways will make a fresh attempt next year,” said Shriniwas Mudgerikar, chief spokesperson, Central Railway.

RVNL is a government enterprise, but I guess there is a private firm carrying the preliminary works...isn´t there?


Have a nice day

http://pppinfraindia.blogspot.com

the article doesn't mention it. i just took a calculated guess though ;)

SOURCE (http://www.zeenews.com/news646051.html)
Agartala: India will extend its railway network to two more places along the India-Bangladesh border to improve connectivity between the two countries, a railway official announced Thursday.

The two places are Sabroom in southern Tripura, 135 km from Agartala, and Akhaurah in western Tripura, just 6 km from the Agartala railway station - the newest station of the Indian railways, coming on the country's rail map in October 2008.

Bangladesh operates regular train services on its side up to Akhaurah and various other places, just opposite several sub-divisional towns in Tripura.

"A team of officials of IRCON (Indian Railway Construction Company) have recently visited Dhaka and held talks with Bangladesh government and railway ministry officials to finalise alignment of the 13-km Agartala-Akhaurah connecting rail line," Northeast Frontier Railway additional general manager Vipin Jha told reporters.

Of the 13-km proposed link railway line to connect with the Bangladesh railway network through Akhaurah railway station, 5.4 km falls in Indian territory and the remaining portion in Bangladesh.

"After approval of the alignment, the railway ministry would sanction the project," Jha said, adding that the two countries had already agreed to connect Agartala-Akhaurah by railway line, for which a survey had been completed in 1999.

The construction of the proposed Akhaurah-Agartala railway link, financed by India, was agreed during the three-day visit to India by Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in January this year.

India and Bangladesh had resumed regular train services in April 2008 - after 43 years - through Gede in West Bengal's Nadia district and Darshana in Bangladesh. The rail journey between Kolkata and Dhaka covers a distance of 406 km.

The service was suspended after the 1965 war between India and Pakistan when Bangladesh was then Pakistan's eastern wing.


Jha said the ongoing works of railway connection upto Sabroom would be completed by March 2014. The proposed railway station would be just 75 km away from the Chittagong international port in southeast Bangladesh.

He said that the broad gauge line, works for which are now on, would reach south Tripura's district headquarter Udaipur by December 2012.


According to the NFR officials, 58 percent of the conversion work from metre gauge to broad gauge from Assam's Lumding to northern Tripura's Kumarghat have been completed. Over Rs.2,000 crore has already been spent for the purpose.

IANS

Metro Rail may take over MRTS

The MRTS segment, currently being operated by the Southern Railway, is likely to be taken-over by the Chennai Metro Rail Limited once the Metro becomes operational.

This will create one authority which will be in control of all the elevated rail networks in the city. Once the merger takes effect, the ‘normal' EMUs that run on the MRTS will be replaced by air-conditioned rakes that have automatic doors.

Speaking to The Hindu recently, T.V. Somanathan, Managing Director, Chennai Metro Rail, said that it made logical sense to integrate the two systems. “The MRTS is a loss making enterprise and not going to cost much to take-over. The State government has already invested two-thirds in the project.

The modalities are yet to be worked out, but by the time the Metro becomes operational, the accumulated loss incurred by the Railway might have compensated for the equity invested by them.”

When a north-south-east corridor along the Buckingham Canal was conceived by the Madras Area Traffic Study Unit (MATSU) way back in the 1970s, it was estimated to cater for six lakh passengers a day. Currently, on an average, only about 70,000 commuters use the MRTS every day.

While operational expense on the network is about Rs.18 lakh per day, earnings amount to around Rs.3 lakh per day. In effect, the MRTS incurs an annual operational loss of Rs.54.7 crore.

By 2013, the accumulated operational loss would have compensated for the 33 per cent investment made by the Southern Railway in Phase-II (Tirumailai to Velachery) of the project.

According to Mr. Somanathan, since the MRTS would connect to the Metro at both ends through inter-modal transit points, the ‘network effect' created by synchronised operations will be beneficial for both the networks.

“It is a part of the Ministry of Urban Development's thinking as well,” he added.

R. Ramanathan, Chief Administrative Officer (Construction), Southern Railway, said that negotiations have to start from scratch. “Right now, we are just concentrating on finishing the extension up to St.Thomas Mount.” One of the major reasons for the failure of MRTS has been the lack of connectivity.

It exists as an isolated, linear network that runs through areas of the city that are mostly institutional in character. Originally, the total length of the MRTS was envisaged to be 59.38 km, creating a circular corridor from the Chennai Beach to Ennore/Tiruvottiyur (industrial zones north of Chennai). The circular corridor was given up in light of the Metro project. The merger is aimed at providing overall integration and improving connectivity.

V. Thamizh Arasan, Head of Transportation Engineering Division, IIT-Madras, said, “It will be administratively convenient to operate a single system. Transport management will also be better under a single agency.”

According to him, commercial exploitation of stations, which has had many false starts, might have a better chance if the merger takes place.

“The idea behind the huge MRTS stations was to establish commercial hubs that would combine work and shopping trips. The Metro link will enhance passenger flow and make the idea viable,” he added. The Hindu

HT (http://www.asianage.com/delhi/delhi-ring-rail-network-all-set-revitalisation-322)
Delhi Ring Rail network all set for revitalisation

The concerns over high volume of traffic on Ring Road has forced the authorities to utilise the virtually defunct “Ring Rail” to transport people and also commercial goods. The step has been taken to decongest the two main peripheral roads around the city in wake of the Commonwealth Games. However, no extra trains have been proposed so far. Officials say that the existing fleet of trains — both passenger and commercial — would be used for the purpose.

On the request of chief minister Sheila Dikshit, railway minister Mamata Banerjee had stated that the railways is planning to reorganise and improve the circular rail network that runs parallel to the Ring Road in Delhi.
“Since all commercial transport will be restricted to enter Delhi during the Commonwealth Games, Ring Rail will be an option to ferry goods in various areas of Delhi,” said a senior government official. The official added that the Ring Rail will be helpful to the daily commuters in Delhi from the neighbouring states. “Daily commuters from NCR, who usually enter Delhi with their transport, can board local trains for their daily business as they will be restricted to bring in their vehicles,” the officials said.
Started during the Asiad 82, the Delhi Ring Rail was a part of the Delhi suburban railway services. There are 12 electric trains on the Ring Rail.

http://img69.imageshack.us/img69/5571/railej.png (http://img69.imageshack.us/i/railej.png/)

^^Article
Wednesday, August 11, 2010, 17:00 Hrs [IST]
Indian Railways revenue up by 6.59 per cent during April- July 2010
By TBM Staff | Mumbai

According to a PIB release, the total approximate earnings of Indian Railways on originating basis during April 1–July 31, 2010 were Rs 29274.55 crore compared to Rs 27464.14 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 6.59 per cent.

The total passenger revenue earnings during first four months of the financial year 2010-11 were Rs 8162.13 crore compared to Rs 7792.58 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 4.74 per cent. The revenue earnings from other coaching amounted to Rs 824.77 crore during April-July 2010 compared to Rs 753.16 crore during the same period last year, an increase of 9.51 per cent. The total goods earnings have gone up from Rs 18489.09 crore during April 1–July 31, 2009 to Rs 19796.56 crore during April 1–July 31, 2010, an increase of 7.07 per cent.

The total approximate number of passengers booked during April-July 2010 was 2598.01 million compared to 2454.34 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 5.85 per cent. In the suburban and non-suburban sectors, the number of passengers booked during April-July 2010 were 1299.82 million and 1298.19 million compared to 1243.12 million and 1211.22 million during the same period last year, showing an increase of 4.56 per cent and 7.18 per cent respectively.

TOI (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Eye-on-Games-black-beauties-gather-steam/articleshow/6284293.cms)
REWARI (Haryana): Indian Railways is gearing up to offer the Commonwealth Games an old world charm. Those who have an interest in the big mean machines or wish to experience the Victorian era lifestyle will now be able to chug along to Rewari about 80km from the capital in one of the oldest serving steam locomotives of the country.

The Rewari steam loco shed built in 1893, a decade before the Old Delhi station was inagurated is undergoing a makeover. In a bid to conserve the British period edifice set up 117 years ago and promote rail tourism during the mega sports event, Northern Railway has decided to convert the only existing steam loco shed in India to a museum. And unlike those at Chanakyapuri's National Rail Museum, the engines at Rewari will be available for live demonstrations.

"Few are aware of the shed's historical significance in helping connect Delhi and Peshawar. It was the only loco shed in North India for a long time,'' said Vikas Arya, senior divisional mechanical engineer of Northern Railway who is in-charge of this facility.

"Besides displaying parts of the steam engine, the museum will exhibit old Victorian era artifacts used in the Indian rail network along with the old signalling system, gramophones and seats. It will have a library housing rare books collected from across India, US and Europe,'' added Arya.

At present, 10 engines each weighing around 125 tonnes are stationed at the shed. "These engines guzzle about 4,000kg coal and 5,000lt of water from Delhi to Rewari. Before commencing on the journey, they need at least 10 hours of heating. They may be old, but they are capable of running at about 100kmph,'' said Soorajbhan, a driver from the steam locomotive cadre. He last drove a steam engine on a commercial route in 1993 two years after which railways withdrew all steam engines from service. Soorajbhan says the thought of operating one of these today still gives him "childish delight''. Co-driver Jagram draws an interesting analogy: "It's like a choice between kulfi and the ice-cream bars. While the bars come in different flavours, the kulfis just cannot be done away with.'' Several film crews even of the recent releases such as Guru, Love Aajkal and Veer have visited the shed. "We were part of Gandhi My Father, which was shot here for over six days,'' said an excited Soorajbhan.

Some of the oldest steam engines will be pulling the heritage coaches during the Games. "This will be part of the special heritage runs on October 9 and 16. Four of these coaches are unique as they are constructed of only wood. We will also place three engines at New Delhi, Old Delhi and Delhi Cantonment stations to offer visitors a peek into railway's heritage. There will be special runs on the Ring Railway Network. All work at the site will be completed in time,'' said Arya.

Some old timers, however, fear the last-minute sprint might not augur well for the shed. "This flurry of activity is only due to the Games. The museum idea took shape only in February 2010. While the National Rail Museum has allotted Rs 10.5 crore to Northern Railway for heritage preservation only 29% of the amount has been diverted here,'' said one of the shed's 22 employees. "The shed was almost abandoned in the late 90s and it was on August 14, 2002 that former rail minister Nitish Kumar approved the plan to turn this into a `live' shed for steam locos,'' he added.

Concerned about the future of these steam locos, 60-year-old Lombu Ram said: "We have approached the divisional railway manager, Ashwini Lohani, several times to make proper infrastructure available to the technicians. Going by the present state of affairs, there will be no one to maintain these jumbo machines after we are gone.''


Read more: Eye on Games, black beauties gather steam - Delhi - City - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Eye-on-Games-black-beauties-gather-steam/articleshow/6284293.cms#ixzz0wLDaBpbg

India Blooms News Service (http://www.indiablooms.com/NewsDetailsPage/newsDetails110810v.php)
Kolkata, Aug 11 (IBNS) The 114th meeting of Zonal Railway Users’ Consultative Committee (ZRUCC) of Eastern Railway was held hereuUnder the chairmanship of V. N. Tripathi, General Manager.

About 70 distinguished members of ZRUCC out of total 114 including members of Legislative Assemblies of West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand, Bihar Bidhan Parishad, Chairmen of different Municipalities, representatives of different Chambers of Commerce, Government Departments, representatives of Passengers Associations etc., joined this meeting.

Tripathi, highlighting the Eastern Railway’s performance, informed Eastern Railway is very much concerned with providing different amenities for the benefit of the rail users in various stations within the jurisdiction of Eastern Railway.

He mentioned that a total of 186 stations of Eastern Railway have been nominated as ‘Adarsh’ stations by Mamata Banerjee, Minister for Railways in her Railway Budget 2009-10.

Eastern Railway has taken special care to upgrade the standard of the amenities available in those stations. With the opening of 8 Computerized Railway Reservation Offices in June 2010, there are altogether 671 computerized Railway reservation offices in Kolkata Passenger Reservation System (PRS) under control of Eastern Railway at present, he added.

According to General Manager, Eastern Railway, Railways have introduced Internet booking facility and 671 reservation offices are opened, for which it has become easier now for booking reserved accommodation in trains.

He also informed that a total of 75 Puja Special trains will be run by Eastern Railway this year following Minister for Railways’ instruction against 63 run last year.

Moreover, 4 extra coaches will be attached to all the trains to generate extra accommodation for the people who plan for journey during Puja holidays this year. He pointed out that other than Puja special trains, Eastern Railway arranged to run a number of special trains on different occasions throughout the year like Shravani Mela specials recently.

He also mentioned that a total of 16 new long distance trains and a number of local trains announced Eastern Railway has introduced including 6 pairs of Ladies’ Specials during the year as per instruction of Hon’ble Minister for Railways.

Tripathi said that for the cultural development, Eastern Railway introduced one Sanskriti Express train to promote ideology of Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore and also another special train; Commonwealth Express was properly received and publicized at Asansol, Kolkata and Durgapur stations.

General Manager said that Eastern Railway has stressed upon to improve the cleanliness in trains and stations, he asked cooperation from the rail users to maintain the level of the cleanliness.

SOURCE (http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Railways-to-go-green-with-four-bio-diesel-plants/658128/)
New Delhi: Indian Railways has planned to set up four bio-diesel plants to reduce its carbon footprint and take forward its experiment with non-conventional form of energy. It is already planting saplings of jatropha, one of the sources of bio-diesel, on pilot basis in partnership with Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).

The plants will mark the entry of railways in production of bio-diesel, however, it will be only for captive use and not for commercial sale of the fuel. The four units will enable the entity in meeting its increasing demand of diesel. As per a new railway policy, 10% bio-diesel has to be mixed with diesel for use in locomotives and therefore railways needs to have a higher stock of bio-fuel with an increase in diesel demand.

The first two plants are to come up by the end of 2012-13 at a total cost of Rs 79 crore. These will be followed by other two plants. “We have planted jatropha on pilot basis on acres of railway land and the plants will be processed in the bio-diesel production units that we have planned,” a senior railway official told FE.

The plan to set up the plants have been in the pipeline for at least last 10 years. Railways entered in an agreement with IOC in 2003. As per the tie-up, IOC was to plant, extract and blend the fuel in high-speed diesel. Railways gave 500 hectare land in Rajkot, Bhavnagar and Jaipur to the public sector oil firm for planting the saplings, which were expected to give 800 tonne of bio-diesel. “The aim has been to reduce the carbon footprint by using blended diesel in the locomotives and become self-sufficient,” a former financial commissioner said requesting anonymity.



Railways’ dependence on IOC will reduce once the plants are commissioned. The national transporter is also likely to save on costs of procuring the non-conventional fuel. Officials of IOC were not available for comments.

Some zonal railways already produce small quantities of bio-fuel from waste vegetable oil collected from hotels. The fuel produced is being utilised in blended form in diesel electric multiple units, light duty road vehicles in workshops. In the last three years, nearly 1.4 lakh litre of bio-fuel has been produced.

CLW develops new class of electrical locomotive

Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Kolkata, a production unit of the Ministry of Railways, has developed a new class of electrical locomotive, WAP-7, which, besides driving the train, will supply electrical power needed by the entire air-conditioned train attached with it.

An official press release described the development of the locomotive as a "unique technological innovation" and said it would be quite useful for long-distance air-conditioned inter-city trains like Durontos, Rajdhanis and Shatabdis.

These trains need adequate electrical power for air-conditioning , lighting, charging points of all coaches, pantry car, public address system and for this purpose presently two separate diesel operated generator power cars are attached as part of the train configuration.

With the introduction of this new class of electric locomotive, these generator cars will not be required in the trains, thereby releasing the additional space for commercial use and will also eliminate noise and air pollution caused by the generator cars, the release said.

The new system is also more economical than the diesel generator sets of power cars. The new locos will be equipped with 1000KW hotel load converter. This technology is referred as Head on Generation (HOG) system. Moreover, this 3-phase HOG scheme loco, generates about 12 per cent – 15 per cent of energy through the regenerative braking system. Thus, this HOG loco is highly energy efficient, the release added. netindian.in

ET
Railway seeks pvt help to develop 93 stations

KOLKATA: The Indian Railways has invited bids from private developers for creating multi-functional complexes (MFCs) in 93 railway stations across
its entire network. With operating revenues under severe strain, the move is in step with the railways’ efforts to open up new revenue streams by generating cash from non-core assets.

These include three stations each under East Central, North Central and North Eastern Railway, including Gorakhpur, four stations under West Central, Central railway (like Gulburga, Wardha), South and North western, five under East Coast and South East Central Railways, six in Northern Railway and Western Railway (like Vasai Road and Lokmanya Tilak Terminus), seven under North EastFrontier (Agartala, Dibrugarh town), Southern Railway and South Eastern railway like Tatanagar, Jhargram, Bishnupur, and nine under South central.

The single largest chunk of MFCs —some 17 of them — are due to come up under Eastern Railway alone. This includes Asansol, Kalyani, Murshidabad, Malda Town, Ballygunj, Dhakuria.

The railways have asked Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) to develop the MFCs. RLDA, which is a separate arm under the ministry of railways and develops railway land for commercial use, will choose plots out of railway land pool and develop these plots on a long-term lease basis. The prospective partner or the developer will have to design, finance, construct, operate, market and maintain these MFCs. “This is the first time such an attempt is being made by Indian Railways to use space around stations,” a railway ministry official said.

These MFCs are supposed to provide railway users facilities like shopping, food stalls and restaurants, book stalls, PCO booths, ATMs, medicine shops and variety stores. Additionally, budget hotels, parking and other amenities will also be made available at these spaces.

The railways have invited expressions of interest (EoIs) from prospective developers either on their individual basis or in a consortium. Depending on the response, RLDA will decide the eligibility criteria, terms and conditions of the bidding and whether these MFCs could be developed through a clustering of stations.

RLDA is in the process of identifying the location and plot sizes. Ideally, such plots will be located near stations that will ensure easy access and steady footfall. The plot sizes are expected to vary between 1000 and 3000 square metres. However, depending on the availability of land in and around stations, the plot sizes could also range from 200 sq m to a few hectares.

CLW develops new class of electrical locomotive

Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Kolkata, a production unit of the Ministry of Railways, has developed a new class of electrical locomotive, WAP-7, which, besides driving the train, will supply electrical power needed by the entire air-conditioned train attached with it.

. netindian.in

Since when CLW is in Kolkata?

Since when CLW is in Kolkata?

you are right. the factory is located in the city of Chittaranjan in West Bengal but their main office is in the capital of Kolkata.

heres the map of Chittaranjan, West Bengal.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&q=Chittaranjan,+Bardhaman,+West+Bengal,+India&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=38.826758,79.013672&ie=UTF8&cd=1&geocode=Fc_BawEd8N4tBQ&split=0&hq=&hnear=Chittaranjan,+Bardhaman,+West+Bengal,+India&ll=23.858288,86.905804&spn=0.043879,0.109863&t=h&z=14

TELEGRAPH (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100815/jsp/frontpage/story_12813492.jsp)
Dhaka seeks Pak rail link via India
JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY

Dhaka, Aug. 14: Moves are afoot to link Bangladesh with Pakistan by rail through India, 63 years after the subcontinent was partitioned.

“We would like to have transit and be connected to all South Asian nations, including Pakistan,” Bangladesh foreign minister Dipu Moni told The Telegraph.

India had agreed last week to allow Bangladeshi truckers to pass through its territory on their way to Nepal and Bhutan, and promised Dhaka railway links with these land-locked nations.

Till the 1965 Indo-Pak war, goods trains used to travel between Lahore and Dhaka — then part of the same country — through India. Islamabad has already said it wants the rail link revived.

Last month, while allowing Afghan trucks transit to India, Pakistan had refused to grant Indians passage to Kabul, saying this would have to wait till Delhi gave it transit to Dhaka.

Top Indian railway officials said they were willing to run a Lahore-Delhi-Dhaka service — initially with goods trains and later, if politics allowed, with passenger trains.

This proposal was floated at a Saarc transport ministers’ conference earlier this year, the officials said. “We have talked to our Pakistani counterparts as well as to Iran on possible railway links,” an official said.

Bangladesh, which lost an estimated two million people in a genocide by the Pakistani army during its freedom struggle in 1971, had until now not been inclined towards any rail link with Pakistan.

Moni, who at 53 is Bangladesh’s second-youngest foreign minister, reflects new thinking that wants to go beyond past hostilities and suspicions. “We are in favour of the Asian Highway connectivity plans.… We want all countries on board in that project,” the minister said.

The Asian Highway is a co-operative project among countries in Asia and Europe, supported by the UN and global banks such as the Asian Development Bank. It seeks to link countries in Asia, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China and Japan, with Europe through a 7,000km trans-continental highway and railway system.

The gaps in the railway and highway networks lie mostly in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.

Bangladesh’s ruling Awami League has long been a supporter of the trans-continental road and rail expressway, but the main Opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), has consistently opposed it.

The BNP’s argument is that if Bangladesh joins the highway project, that would give mainland India easier access to its northeastern states.

However, the Sheikh Hasina government has recently signed treaties to give India land and sea transit to its Northeast, which could potentially fetch Dhaka up to $1 billion a year in transit and other fees.

Hassan Shahriar, political analyst and former editor of the widely circulated Bangladeshi newspaper Ittefaq, said: “Although (past) BNP governments have been close to Pakistan, domestic political imperatives could still lead to opposition to this idea.”

However, Moni struck a confident note on Bangladesh’s plans for the future: “We are not concerned with electoral imperatives, even though there will be an election in another four years. Our plans have a long-term timeline... we have planned till 2021 (when Bangladesh will turn 50).”

The Awami League government, which came to power with a landslide victory in 2008, has been working to normalise relations with India despite the Opposition crying “sellout” every time it signs an agreement with Delhi.

A $1-billion soft-loan treaty signed in the presence of finance minister Pranab Mukherjee last Saturday, which would give Bangladesh credit to build its road and rail infrastructure and to buy railway coaches and buses, was dubbed “a 20-year treaty of ghulami (slavery)” by BNP head Khaleda Zia at a massive rally.

But the Awami League believes that better infrastructure, freer trade with India and better living conditions for the common man will keep the public on its side.

“You have to remember that the 1971 spirit (of friendship and co-operation between India and Bangladesh) is back.… The aberration (of frozen relations) in between is over,” Moni said.

Rail freight corridor cost doubles in 5 yrs to Rs 73k cr

The work toward ambitious dedicated freight corridor (DFC) of Indian Railways might not have covered much ground in the last five years but the total project cost has escalated more than twice during this time. Railways planned to build the corridor, which is pegged to ease freight movement and contribute to the industrial development of the country at Rs 28,000 crore.

However, the cost has now increased to nearly Rs 73,000 crore, according to officials of Dedicated Freight Corridor of India (DFCCIL). DFCCIL is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) created by railways to develop the corridor by financial year 2016-17. “The total cost of the project, excluding cost of land, is estimated at Rs 68,000 crore. The land would cost another Rs 5,000 crore,” a senior official of DFCCIL said.

“The initial cost estimate generally increases with time as the picture becomes clearer on the requirements to implement the project. The same has happened in case of dedicated freight corridor. Due to escalation in input cost, addition of new segments and time overruns the total cost of the project has increased,” a senior railway official told FE.

Even as DFCCIL expects the cost to rise to Rs 73,000 crore, the Planning Commission thinks the project could consume Rs 1 lakh crore by the time it is complete. The commission has asked railways to prepare a new funding plan for the project as the increased costs would create pressure on railway finances and DFCCIL may require to borrow more. The project is to be developed through loans from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and World Bank, and equity from Indian Railways in the ratio of 2:1.

The DFC was conceived in year 2005 and railway subsidiary RITES had come out with cost estimation of Rs 28,000 crore in year 2007. The dedicated freight corridor has six segments.

DFCCIL has secured most of the loan till the second phase of western corridor, which traverses from Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Maharashtra to Dadri in Uttar Pradesh. The process is on to get funds for eastern corridor that goes from Bihar to Punjab. Land acquisition is in progress.

The project was planned with two segments—western and eastern. Later four more segments were added. These are East West Corridor (Kolkata-Mumbai), North South Corridor (Delhi-Chennai), East Coast Corridor (Kharagpur-Vijayawada) and Southern Corridor (Goa-Chennai).

Financial Express

Tue, Aug 17 05:32 PM
New Delhi, Aug 17 (PTI) India''s first AC double-decker train is expected to go into service by the year end, with Railways successfully completing its trail runs recently. The train is likely to be introduced as an inter-city service on a high density route, having a separate fare structure, indicated a senior railway official.

The first AC coach was rolled out by Railway Coach Factory Kapurthala in March this year, after which it went for extensive trial runs. Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee had inspected the coach here on March 31, designed for a maximum speed of upto 160 km per hour.

According to the official, they are in the process of obtaining the speed certificate of upto 105 km per hour. "Trail run for 130 km per hour is also on in the Agra-Mathura section and this would be completed within this month," the official said.

The official, however, did not disclose the section where it will be introduced first. The train will have complete sitting accommodation with each coach having a capacity of 128 passengers as compared to 78 passengers in Shatabdi chair cars, thus increasing the sitting space by almost 70 per cent.

Space for the two decks has been generated by optimally using the well space between the two bogies. End-On-Generation configuration where power for train lighting and air-conditioning is supplied by two power cars, was attached at both ends of the train.

The coaches boasts of many superior features like aesthetically pleasing stainless steel body, high speed Eurofima design bogies with air springs for superior ride quality and many other safety-related features. The coaches are also fitted with control discharge toilet system.

Source:http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20100817/1416/tnl-ac-double-decker-train-likely-to-go_1.html

TRACK SAFETY
| TNN

The railways has decided to take a final call on installing the much-debated anti-collision device across the country, aiming to ensure “zero” train accidents.

Railway Board chairman Vivek Sahai said the final trial of ACD system according to revised specifications will be conducted from September 1 at Arakkonam near Chennai.

After several accidents during Mamata Banerjee’s tenure as minister, the railways, though sceptical about the efficacy of ACD, agreed for the final trial on revised specifications. During trial, it will be tested whether the indigenous ACD system will work effectively on double and multiple tracks, in electrified territory and on tacks with automatic signalling system.

If it passes the test, ACD will have to be placed on every loco engine and at every station along with repeaters (cheaper than ACD) to be placed on curves on railway tracks.

While Sahai said installing ACD system on the entire rail network will cost 1,500-1,600 crore, the railways wants to ensure zero accidents.

According to estimates, for installing ACD on one loco engine, the cost will be around 5 lakh and for one station, the cost will be around 15-20 lakh.

There have been more that 500 deaths in around 35 train accidents in the last four years, which could have been prevented if railways had taken interest in installing ACD.

Though repeated assurances were given by top railway authorities, nothing moved even after more than 10 accidents this year, claiming nearly 250 lives.

The official, however, did not disclose the section where it will be introduced first. The train will have complete sitting accommodation with each coach having a capacity of 128 passengers as compared to 78 passengers in Shatabdi chair cars, thus increasing the sitting space by almost 70 per cent.


I'll tell you the routes its gonna be introduced first.

Howrah - anywhere else
Sealdah - anywhere else
Chitpore - anywhere else

TELEGRAPH (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1100819/jsp/frontpage/story_12828581.jsp)

Rail test on collision buster
R. SURYAMURTHY
New Delhi, Aug. 18: The Indian Railways has eventually decided to conduct trials on its anti-collision device from next month to see if it can be installed nationwide.

It has hinted that the years of delay in the country-wide installation of the device, developed almost a decade ago, had to do with the huge costs involved.

The railways were criticised after experts said the anti-collision device or ACD could have prevented last month’s train collision at Sainthia, which claimed 62 lives.

“We plan to test the anti-collision device in Arakkonam area of Southern Railway from September 1,” Railway Board chairman Vivek Sahai said. “After a month’s trial, depending upon its performance report, the railways would look at implementing it across the nation.”

Told that the device had proved its worth in Konkan Railway and North-East Frontier Railway, the only two zonal railways where it has been installed, Sahai said: “They are working on a single track. The testing would be on multiple tracks with automatic signalling and other differing parameters.”

Asked about the years of delay in testing the device on multiple tracks, he said: “The cost of implementing the project is huge. It would cost Rs 2,500 crore for the devices to be installed across the country. It would cost about Rs 15 lakh to be installed in a single locomotive and around Rs 7 lakh per station.”

India has about 7,000 locomotives and a similar number of stations, which would translate to Rs 1,540 crore for the ACD installation. The official did not explain where the other Rs 960 crore would be required.

The ACD works on the General Packet Radio Service, which is used in mobile communications. When installed in train engines (along with an auto-braking unit), guard vans, stations and level-crossing gates (both manned and unmanned), the network of ACD systems prevents collisions. It automatically brings a train to a halt if the track ahead is not clear. The train starts braking 3km ahead of a blockade or barrier.

The railways had developed the ACD after the Gaisal accident of 1999 killed 268 people. Experts have said the technology has been ready for country-wide use since 2003, and questioned claims that it may not be effective on multiple tracks, citing certificates issued by foreign agencies.

Railway minister Mamata Banerjee had in January 2000 climbed into a locomotive during the testing of an ACD. She then gave the green light to the project. The Railway Board had earlier said the device would be installed country-wide by 2009 in a phased manner.

SAIL to develop Kulti wagon unit with RITES

State-run SAIL today said it will enter into a pact next month with RITES, a subsidiary of Indian Railways, for jointly setting up a railway wagon making unit in Kulti, in West Bengal.

"We will sign the agreement next month for the joint-venture unit with RITES," SAIL Chairman CS Verma told reporters on the sidelines of a book launch function organised by the Dainik Bhaskar group. Verma said the proposed JV unit will have an annual production capacity of 1,200 railway wagons.

The project is estimated to cost Rs 100-200 crore.

SAIL, which has an annual production capacity of about 14 million tonnes, will supply its specialised steel products to the proposed wagon-making unit, Verma added.

For the project, SAIL may give its surplus land in Kulti near Burnpur, West Bengal. The location of the plant could be near Chittaranjan Locomotive Works.

Earlier this month, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee had said the tentative name of the factory would be Bengal Wagon Industry.

The present wagon demand in the country is around 25,000 and is expected to rise further, once the dedicated freight corridors start coming up. Business Standard

Sincerely hope that soon India will plan and execute High Speed Rail Networks like China, Japan, Spain,Germany & France. Wish they could connect route from

Amritsar-Ludhiana-Chandigarh-Delhi-Agra-Jaipur-Udaipur-Ahmedabad-Baroda-Surat-Mumbai thereby connecting 5 Capitals on the high trafffic section to get economically viable.

Look forward to see some atleast 300-350 kms per hour Really Hot Trains running on elevated tracks every hour!!! Covering the entire route in say...6-7 hours Flat!:banana:

This would be a gr8 alternative to Air,Rail & Road transport which gets affected & slows down by many factors like Rain,Floods,Fog etc.

It will be the safest & Fastest mode befitting to Future India's Global Rise!:)
If Taiwan can make it then why not India..:ohno:

Yes.. but, dont think we could see this HST within the next decade!! and i think Bangalore- Chennai is a very realistic and appropriate plan to take up first!!

PATNA: Buoyed by the successful implementation of new technologies in the name of modernization, the Indian Railways is now toying with the idea of manufacturing double-decker coaches to cope with the rush of local passengers across the country.

Of late, the railways has been facing an uphill task in coping with the huge rush of passengers who commute daily on crowded routes across the country.

According to a Railway Board official, the Lucknow-based Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO) has been asked to build a prototype of a double-decker coach. The railways intends to introduce the double-decker coaches first in Mumbai and then in other metropolitan cities.

The Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC), the Central Railway and the Western Railway have already given their nod to the project, he said.

According to RDSO director general KBL Mittal , an RDSO wing will manufacture the double-decker coaches. The feasibility of the double-decker coaches will be determined on the basis of the present track conditions as well as the height of the existing over head electric wire, he said.

According to sources, the railways is of the view that a two-storeyed local double-decker train would be far better an idea than simply adding to the number of coaches on local trains to clear the rush of passengers. The MRVC had earlier proposed to run double-decker trains with the load combination of about 18 coaches. However, it could not materialize for one reason or the other, the sources said.

A Board official said that double-decker trains could only be run for short distance and that too with limited number of coaches. Besides, the railways will have to improve the existing infrastructure on tracks, including re-spacing of signals, increase in platform length and slight alteration in track alignment work for the smooth run of double-decker local trains, he said.

According to the RDSO director general, double-decker coaches will only require changes in the coach design. Every double-storeyed coach will have an additional capacity of about 30 percent. It would be a successful venture for the railways on the most crowded routes, he said.

An ECR official said that Patnaites would need double-decker local trains once the Digha rail bridge is commissioned in 2012. The mainline route from Mughalsarai to Jhajha under the Danapur division of the ECR needs a dedicated route for running double-decker local trains, he said.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/Railways-mulls-over-double-decker-trains/articleshow/6338346.cms

Govt needs to open the Railway sector to private players like Airlines & Telecom.

Hi I have been a longtime lurker on this forum and now I am making my first post. Please forgive my ignorance when I ask this question. How is the renovation of the New Delhi Railway Station coming up? Is it close to the vision planned by Terry Farrell?

ET (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/Trains-to-use-GPS-to-avoid-accidents/articleshow/6380931.cms)
NEW DELHI: The global positioning system (GPS) technology will be installed on trains in the next two years to avoid accidents, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Friday.

GPS is a satellite-based navigation system which works in any weather conditions 24 hours a day.

"The project for introducing GPS in the trains is under consideration and in two years it will be in place," Banerjee informed the Rajya Sabha during question hour.

"It will be helpful in reducing the number of accidents even on unmanned signals," she added

CHICAGO: US-based locomotive giant Electro Motive Diesel, currently collaborating with Indian Railways in manufacturing high horse power diesel locomotives, will soon make operational a full-fledged R&D office in India to support technology upgradation of locos.

"The EMD office will be inaugurated in Lucknow soon to support Indian Railway's technology upgradation in diesel locomotives," EMD president and CEO John Hamilton told.

EMD design locomotives are currently being manufactured at Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW) at Varanasi.

"EMD and DLW have been actively working together to constantly upgrade and improve on the technology with the introduction of new and higher horse power diesel locomotives," Hamilton said.

EMD with an annual turnover of $ 1.8 billion is supplying diesel locos to over 75 countries.

He said "IR has decided to ramp up production at DLW to 200-250 4500 HP locomotives in a year".

EMD is the only company in the world specialising in diesel locomotives over a period of 87 years. It is the second largest manufacturer of diesel locomotive.

"Regular training is being provided at Varanasi, Hubli and other railway sheds by EMD personnel from USA and Canada. Additionally, IR officials are taken to tour plants at LaGrange in US and London, Ontario in Canada for training and familiarisation with EMD locomotives," he said when asked about providing training facility to the Indian Railways.

EMD has enhanced its service support network in India to support Indian Railways locomotive maintenance facilities by placing service support personnel at five locations including Siliguri, Ahmedabad, Hubli and Delhi to support the growing fleet at multiple locations across India.

"EMD will continue to strengthen maintenance support infrastructure in India," he said.

Asked whether Indian industry has gained because of technology transfer on high power locos, he said: "Indian industry has learnt and absorbed new technologies and processes".

"There are about 6,000 individual parts in a locomotive which really can be built in India due to the indigenisation of parts and components."

Currently up to 20 per cent drafting and engineering work and up to 60 per cent of the information technology services, provided by EMD's strategic information solutions is being performed by Indian companies with resources both in India and USA.


Source : http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/transportation/railways/US-locomotive-major-EMD-to-set-up-RD-shop-at-Lucknow/articleshow/6324727.cms

Hi I have been a longtime lurker on this forum and now I am making my first post. Please forgive my ignorance when I ask this question. How is the renovation of the New Delhi Railway Station coming up? Is it close to the vision planned by Terry Farrell?

It is awaiting final go ahead from other departments.