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#1 ·
Post articles related to the Indian railways here
 
#2 ·
L&T eyes JVs with railways


Larsen & Toubro is studying the possibility of floating joint venture companies with Indian Railways to manufacture equipment for the railways.

Indicating its future roadmap, board member and president (operations) at L&T, JP Nayak said: “Indian Railways has two locomotive manufacturing units — the Chittaranjan Locomotive Works and the Diesel Locomotive Works. There is a possibility of putting up another loco manufacturing unit in India, and we will be interested in setting up a JV with the government.” He was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a CII seminar in Kolkata on Friday.

Elaborating further, Mr Nayak said: “The Railways has decided to set up new manufacturing capabilities through the public-private-partnership (PPP) route, and we are interested in floating a JV with them.”

Incidentally, the company has decided to invest Rs 2,500 crore during the current financial year to augment capacities at its growth centres. The money will be spent in augmenting facilities at all locations and for setting up a ship-building yard in Tamil Nadu.

The company plans to raise about Rs 700-800 crore during the second half of the current fiscal. On the possible fund-raising route, Mr Nayak said: “We may raise debt, or it could be combination of debt and equity, a decision that is yet to be taken.” Mr Nayak said the company expects a sales growth of 30% during the current fiscal.

In 2007-08, it registered a revenue of Rs 29,600 crore. He said joint ventures between L&T and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for manufacturing super-critical boilers and turbine generators would be operational within the next 12-18 months.

Investments in the two joint ventures would be around Rs 1,000 crore each. While L&T holds 51% in the JV, Mitsubishi controls the remaining 49%.
source economictimes.com
 
#6 ·
North India to Get New Rail Link

India's Union Railway Ministry has approved the construction of 88km of track between Sonepat and Jind, in the north of the country, at a cost of Rs 234crore (£28.2m).

The broad-gauge railway line will be completed by the end of 2011, writes the Indian Business Standard.

Thirteen railway stations will be constructed between Sonepat and Jind, with the line also requiring at least 14 bridges to pass drains and canals.
 
#7 ·
TOI

Rail link between Jogbani and Nepal soon: Lalu

4 Jun 2008, 2324 hrs IST,PTI

FORBESGANJ(Bihar): Seeking closer economic ties between India and Nepal, Railway minister Lalu Prasad on Wednesday announced laying of a rail line between Jogbani in Bihar and Viratnagar, the commercial and industrial hub of Nepal.

"India has an age-old bond of friendship with Nepal and extension of the 108 km-long Katihar-Jogbani broad gauge line to Viratnagar will further strengthen our already close people to people contact and economic relations," Lalu said addressing a gathering after commissioning of the newly laid Katihar-Jogbani broad gauge line at Jogbani.

The minister flagged off 3160 down Jogbani-Kolkata Express and announced commissioning of four pairs of passenger trains between Jogbani and Katihar under Katihar division of North Frontier railway.

He also flagged off by remote control 5715 Kishanganj- Ajmer Garib Nawaz Express with increased frequency from once a week to thrice weekly.

The railways were in the process of executing a number of projects in Bihar which would create job opportunities for the Biharis, who were second to none in term of talent and skill, on a big scale, the minister said.
 
#8 ·
TOI

Rail link between Jogbani and Nepal soon: Lalu
The Nepal rail link is a welcome development. I really wonder why can't India help a strategically important and friendly neighbor like Nepal, without acting like a big brother, to lay down a rail network.

Just imagine the strategic and long-term benefits it would give to India, especially in terms of halting the increasingly leaning of Nepal towards China. Imagine how a railway network in Nepal that is well connected to India will increase trade. Imagine being able to travel directly from various Indian cities to Kathmandu/other cities in Nepal via rail.

If we can connect by rail to not so friendly countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh, what stops us from doing so with a friendly country of Nepal?

I really feel sometimes that our government doesn't have a long term vision on further cementing ties with a friendly country who acts as a welcome geographical buffer with a not so friendly country :eek:hno:. A railway network would help a long way to achieve this aim amongst others.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Partly underwater Kolkata East-West Metro Corridor cleared

PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU: GOVT OF INDIA

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval for implementation of the East-West Metro Corridor project, Kolkata covering a length of 13.77 kms. (8 km under ground and 5.77 km elevated), on Standard Gauge, from Howrah Station to Salt Lake Sector V at a completion cost of Rs. 4676 crores to be executed through a Joint Venture Company to be formed by the Central Government and the State Government.

The Cabinet also gave its approval for constitution of Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), High Power Committee, Empowered Committee, Empowered Group of Ministers and Legal Framework.

A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) will be constituted for successful execution of the project as well as it’s operation and maintenance. Such SPV will be Joint Venture Company of Government of West Bengal and Government of India. Equity participation of Government of West Bengal and Government of India will be on 50:50 basis.

The objective for implementation of the East-West Metro Corridor Project, Kolkata is to provide much needed additional transport infrastructure to the city of Kolkata, capital of the State of West Bengal.

The project will completed in six and half years in two stages. Ist stage of 5.77 Kms, elevated section would be commissioned in five and half years time.
 
#10 ·
The Nepal rail link is a welcome development. I really wonder why can't India help a strategically important and friendly neighbor like Nepal, without acting like a big brother, to lay down a rail network.

Just imagine the strategic and long-term benefits it would give to India, especially in terms of halting the increasingly leaning of Nepal towards China. Imagine how a railway network in Nepal that is well connected to India will increase trade. Imagine being able to travel directly from various Indian cities to Kathmandu/other cities in Nepal via rail.

If we can connect by rail to not so friendly countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh, what stops us from doing so with a friendly country of Nepal?

I really feel sometimes that our government doesn't have a long term vision on further cementing ties with a friendly country who acts as a welcome geographical buffer with a not so friendly country :eek:hno:. A railway network would help a long way to achieve this aim amongst others.
no country has a "long term vision" when it comes to foreign policy. it all depends on who won the last election. look at the switch from kennedy to nixon in terms of how they viewed india. the only country i can think of that has a long term vision-based foreign policy is china, and that's because the same people control their government for 30-40 years at a time. imagine 30-40 years of congress and sonia. gross.
 
#11 ·
Agartala To Be On Indian Railway Map Soon

Sunday 08th of June 2008

Later this month, the capital of Tripura will become the second state capital in the northeast after Guwahati to find a place on the country's railway map.

'The first ever train service to Agartala is all set to begin June 30 as the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) is working on war-footing to meet the deadline,' NFR chief engineer F.S. Meena told IANS.


Prime minister Manmohan Singh had earlier declared the railway project in Tripura a national project.

'It took more than four decades to connect the capital city after northern Tripura's business hub Dharmanagar, 200 km from here, came under the railway map in 1964,' said Tripura Transport Minister Manik Dey.

'The NFR has so far spent Rs.8 billion to connect Agartala by rail by making three big tunnels through the Longtharai valley, Baramura and Atharamura hills in Dhalai and west Tripura districts,' said Meena.

The 1,962-metre Longtharai tunnel is the longest railway tunnel in eastern India.

According to B. Chowdhury, a railway engineer, the NFR would also start work to lay a new track in the 110 km Agartala-Sabroom line by January next year after completing the final location survey.

Approximately 1,200 acres of land would be required for the Rs.8.13 billion project to connect Tripura's southernmost border town Sabroom by rail.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar said: 'After the Indian Railways extends its line up to Sabroom, it would be very easy to connect with the Chittagong international port in southeast Bangladesh, which is just 75 km from there.'
 
#13 ·
Railways to begin double stack container trial run in July


The 15-day trial run for double stack container train, as part of the dedicated freight corridor (DFC) project, would begin from the first week of July 2008.

"The fortnight long trial run would be conducted between Daitari and Jakhapura in Orissa to establish a new height for the overhead electrical equipment line so that double stack container can run on electrified line," a senior Railway Ministry official said.

Double stack containers are running in China but they are not the standard international containers as they run on a lesser height.

"If this experiment succeeds, India will have a new technology to run double stack container on flat wagon. This is significant because most of the freight lines are electrified unlike in USA where double track containers run on non-electrified diesel locos," said the official.

About the proposed height of the overhead electrical equipment height between Daitari and Jakhpura, the official said electric wires are likely to be erected at a height of 7.4 metres.

The RDSO would conduct the trial run on the 60-km stretch in Orissa.

The final report of the trial run is expected to be submitted by the end of July 2008.
 
#14 ·
Here is another news item from HT about the new Agartala line, and has more information than the one from newspostindia:

Agartala to be on Indian railway map soon

Later this month, the capital of Tripura will become the second state capital in the northeast after Guwahati to find a place on the country's railway map.

"The first ever train service to Agartala is all set to begin June 30 as the Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) is working on war-footing to meet the deadline," NFR chief engineer FS Meena told IANS.

Prime minister Manmohan Singh had earlier declared the railway project in Tripura a national project.

"It took more than four decades to connect the capital city after northern Tripura's business hub Dharmanagar, 200 km from here, came under the railway map in 1964," said Tripura Transport Minister Manik Dey.

"The NFR has so far spent Rs.8 billion to connect Agartala by rail by making three big tunnels through the Longtharai valley, Baramura and Atharamura hills in Dhalai and west Tripura districts," said Meena.

The 1,962-metre Longtharai tunnel is the longest railway tunnel in eastern India.

According to B. Chowdhury, a railway engineer, the NFR would also start work to lay a new track in the 110 km Agartala-Sabroom line by January next year after completing the final location survey.

Approximately 1,200 acres of land would be required for the Rs.8.13 billion project to connect Tripura's southernmost border town Sabroom by rail.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar said: "After the Indian Railways extends its line up to Sabroom, it would be very easy to connect with the Chittagong international port in southeast Bangladesh, which is just 75 km from there."

A small bridge over river Feni can connect Sabroom and Khagrachari, across the border in Bangladesh, to open a second railway link between the two neighbours after the Kolkata-Dhaka rail service, which resumed April 14 this year after a gap of 43 years.

"After extending the railway line to Sabroom, Tripura and the entire northeast would be linked with Southeast Asia very easily," the chief minister told IANS.

"The Left parties led by Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) had spearheaded a series of movements since the early 1960s to extend the railway line up to the state capital. In 1985, we have organised a march to Delhi demanding extension of railway line in this northeastern state," he added.

India's railway budget for 2008-09 announced plans to extend the railway line to Tripura's southernmost sub-divisional town Sabroom.

"The Bangladesh government is actively considering New Delhi's proposal to allow India to use Chittagong international port for easy communication between rest of India and northeastern states and Southeast Asian countries," Sudhakar Dalela, councillor (trade and commerce) of the Indian High Commission in Dhaka, said here recently.

Meanwhile, the NFR has already conducted a survey to connect Agartala with Akhaurah railway station in Bangladesh.

The distance between the newly constructed Agartala railway station and Akhaurah railway station, an important rail junction in Bangladesh, is just five kilometres.
 
#15 ·
Here is another news item from HT about the new Agartala line, and has more information than the one from newspostindia:

Agartala to be on Indian railway map soon
Thanks MxC for posting the news. :)

Actually, I didn't quote the whole news from newspostindia. I just posted the Agartala news.

Well, the "Chittagong international port" related news I didn't post. I doubt if it is going to happen in near future. Their constant disagreement forced India to invest on Kaladan project in Myanmar.
 
#19 · (Edited)
^^ its apparently a metre gauge line, and the train consists of a single coach. it took them 18 years for this achievement, wtf?
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080609/jsp/northeast/story_9383531.jsp
As for the single coach, though it's not mentioned likewise, I'm assuming they must have meant to say that it's kind of an inspection train. I can't imagine it being a regular commercial service with just one coach!

As for the gauge, I read the telegraph link and it's even more confusing and gives the appearence that it's actually not even meter, but a narrow gauge :bash:. Look at this part:

“This track can be easily converted into metre gauge once the gauge conversion work between Lumding and Badarpur is complete.”
If it's alread broad gauge or meter gauge, then this part is meaning less; makes sense only if existing gauge is narrow. Now is someone aware about what is happening on this Lumdig-Badarpur section?? That should help make deductions on what actually is on ground.
 
#20 ·
Thanks MxC for posting the news. :)

Actually, I didn't quote the whole news from newspostindia. I just posted the Agartala news.

Well, the "Chittagong international port" related news I didn't post. I doubt if it is going to happen in near future. Their constant disagreement forced India to invest on Kaladan project in Myanmar.
Oops! I had just read the news on HT when I saw it here, and I thought (without clicking your link ofcourse) that this wasn't the full news, and therefore posted the HT version.
 
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