Track Maintenance is essential for safe and smooth running of trains. Govt. has accorded high priority to track maintenance to ensure accident free travel.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday the Centre is committed to put all the state capitals of the northeast on the rail map and is executing 15 new projects in the region.
“We are committed to bring all the state capitals of the northeast region on the rail map. The government of India is executing 15 new rail line projects of 1,385 km length, at a cost of over Rs 47,000 crore,” Modi said during his visit to Mizoram.
“It is said that the lack of connectivity is one of the biggest hurdles in the path of development of the Northeastern region,” Modi noted, adding: “My government wants to do ‘transformation by transportation’ through investment in infrastructure…”
He said the Centre has been proactively following the ‘Act East Policy’. “As a gate-way to South East Asia, Mizoram stands to gain immensely from this. It can emerge as a key transit point for trade with Myanmar and Bangladesh,” said the Prime Minister.
The vision of New India can be realised only if fruits of development reach all, he said.
The Centre plans to focus on around 115 districts which are relatively backward when evaluated on various indicators. This will benefit backward districts of Northeastern states, including Mizoram, said Modi.
“In the spirit of “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas” every Indian, irrespective of caste, gender, religion, class must have equal opportunities to partake in the new prosperity,” he added.
Modi was in Mizoram to inaugurate the 60 MW Tuirial Hydro Electric Power Project (HEPP). He dedicated the project to the people saying it will boost the socio-economic development of the state.
Tuirial Hydropower Project is the first major central government project to be successfully commissioned in Mizoram, Modi said, also adding that besides electricity the reservoir water will also open new avenues for navigation.
“This will provide connectivity to remote villages. The huge reservoir, spread over an area of 45 square km, can also be used for development of fisheries,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister said the project would boost eco-tourism and provide a source of assured drinking water supply.
He said the project was first cleared by the union government of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, way back in 1998 but got delayed.
“The completion of this project is a reflection of our commitment to complete ongoing projects and usher in a new era of development in the Northeastern region,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister also said that during the tenure of Vajpayee, significant work was done for the development of the Northeast.
“We have taken forward this vision and are devoting resources for the progress of the Northeast. My ministerial colleagues are frequently visiting the Northeast,” Modi said.
“There have been over 150 ministerial visits. Our initiative – the Ministry of DoNER at your doorstep has added impetus to the development of the Northeast. It has enabled us to understand the aspirations of the Northeast even better,” he added.
Modi also said that he was delighted to be in Mizoram and this was his first visit as Prime Minister as he had visited the state before also.
“I admire the beauty and friendly nature of the people,” he said.
“The high literacy rate, scenic beauty and availability of large English-speaking population in Mizoram make for a perfect blend to develop the state as a model tourist destination,” said the Prime Minister.
Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/centre-has-15-new-rail-projects-for-northeast-pm-narendra-modi/articleshow/62094635.cms
Railways may be one of the most coveted portfolios but it can turn out to be a roller-coaster ride for many. Piyush Goyal surely knew what he was up to when he succeeded Suresh Prabhu after the latter’s exit following a spate of train accidents. Goyal completed 100 days in office on Tuesday. In an interview to DK Singh, the Union minister of railways shares his vision for the monolithic transporter. Excerpts:
You hardly got time to settle in your new ministry, with train derailments and Elphinstone stampede happening shortly after you took over. Did you anticipate such a tough start?
It has been a learning experience. Suresh Prabhu did admirably well in bringing to fore the transformation of railways. I am building upon that. I am trying to ensure that we meet the aspirations of every train traveller. There was a very unfortunate incident at Elphinstone Road. We undertook an extensive root cause analysis after that.
What is the result of your analysis?
There is a need to focus on Mumbai suburban network. We are looking at a very holistic vision of how Mumbai suburban would develop over the next five years so as to ensure much a more comfortable and safe travel for Mumbai consumers.
We have made major changes in the way stations, foot over-bridges, platforms and entry/exit points were considered in the railways. Henceforth, there will never be a budgetary constraint whenever a platform needs to be done up or foot over-bridges to be improved or new ones made. Nearly 3,000 escalators have been set up across the country for faster evacuation of passengers and for their comfort, too.
We are working to re-categorise all stations in the country based on three criteria: revenue, passenger footfall and strategic value. Revenue was always a criterion. It’s a method to decide which station is important. Mughalsarai, for instance, may not get much revenue or passengers but all trains go through that junction. Suburban stations were earlier in C category because there was not much revenue. So we are changing their categories, which will help us to allocate more resources for passenger amenities, necessities and safety.
I understand the ministry is working with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in some areas. What is it about?
The railway is working with ISRO in two major areas. The first is GPS location and mapping of all works through satellite imaging. The second is mapping the assets of the railways. Wherever railway land is available, it will be used for doubling of lines, to build other infrastructure facilities.
At some places, we are exploring monetisation of land for two primary reasons. The first is to create warehouses with cold storage facilities to store agricultural produce or goods to be transported over long distances.
What happens today is people move from production base to warehouses and then to railway stations. Our aim is to reduce one logistic chain. The second is to see if we can develop those land tracts for housing and commercial activities and use those funds to increase investments in passenger services.
Rail safety remains a major concern. What have you done about it?
My first and topmost priority is safety. We have taken many major decisions and all of them are being executed at different levels, which cumulatively will make us the safest railways in the world. For instance, we are looking at how to make signalling more modern and efficient and ensure that trains don’t collide, particularly during fog or bad weather.
In my first month as railways minister, I took a major decision to eliminate unmanned level crossings within a year. The response from all zones has been outstanding. Over the next few years, we will replace even them with underpasses and over-bridges if state governments give us adequate support.
Operating ratio has been an area of major concern for successive railways ministers. It almost touched 97% in the last fiscal. What are you doing about it?
We will certainly improve that. We are working to bring more efficiency in operations and to bring down costs wherever we can. My own feeling is that by 2022, I would target for an operating ratio of anywhere between 80-85%.
The Congress has been critical of the bullet train project…
It is typical of Congress thinking. They forget what they had started. Bullet train project was initiated during the UPA regime. Discussions with the Japanese started under (former prime minister) Manmohan Singh who subsequently started opposing it. Our government finalised it in such attractive terms that now it’s very economical and it will help develop the entire 500km stretch as a hub of economic activities.
Source: http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/decisions-being-executed-will-make-us-the-safest-rail-network-in-world-piyush-goyal/story-Sdb3qz1Q7l9V3cHvO4lYBK.html
Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Railways
21-November-2017 15:07 IST
More Than Three Decade Old Demand for an “Express” Train for People of Kirandul in Dantewada District of Chhattisgarh Fulfilled
Railway Administration Extends Train No. 08152 Visakhapatnam – Jagdalpur Upto Kirandul
This is Also a Fulfilment of Promise of Railway Minister to Start Such a Train Shortly
Fulfilling the demand of more than three old decades of local public of Kirandul for running of an “Express Train” in their area, Indian Railways has extended the existing special train between Visakhapatnam-Jagdalpur upto Kirandul (in Dantewada District of Chhattisgarh State) with effect from 20th November, 2017. This is the first ‘Express’ category train for the people of Kirandul which is a left wing extremist affected area.
Minister of Railways and Coal Shri Piyush Goyal in his recent tour to Chhattisgarh had promised to extend this train to Kirandul following a request from Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh Dr. Raman Singh. Under the direction of Shri Piyush Goyal this work was expedited and the promise was fulfilled within a fortnight. This train passes through naxal area like “Dantewada” with full security.
The inauguration for extension of this Train No. 08152 Visakhapatnam – Jagdalpur to Kirandul was done on 20th November, 2017 by Shri Kedar Kashyap, Minister of Education, Govt. of Chhattisgarh in the august presence of Shri Dinesh Kashyap, Member of Parliament, Bastar (Chhattisgarh) along with local MLA, Mayor and other dignitaries.
The inaugural run of the train was received with very enthusiasm by the public of Kirandul. The public were delighted with the arrival of first Mail and Express train to their area Kirandul which will connect them to Delhi, Chennai, Howrah etc. via Visakhapatnam. It will be an overnight train for the convenience of the passengers.
DETAILS OF SPECIAL TRAIN WITH SPECIAL FARE
Train No. 08511 Kirandul -Visakhapatnam special train with special fare will leave Kirandul daily from 21.11.2017 to 31.12.2017 at 15.00hrs and reach Visakhapatnam at 03.00hrs on the following day.
Train No.08512 from Visakhapatnam – Jagdalpur special train with special fare will leave Visakhapatnam daily from 21.11.2017 to 31.12.2017 at 22.15hrs and will reach Kirandul at 10.00hrs on the following day.
Enroute these special trains will stop at Kottavalasa, Araku, Koraput, Jeypore, and Kotpar Road, Jagdalpur, Dilmili, Kaklur, Dantewara and Bacheli in both directions.
These trains comprise 09 coaches viz. One AC III Tier, Three Sleeper Class, Three General Second Class and Two Second Class Luggage Cum Brake Van coaches.
The abstract timings of the special trains:
08512 Visakhapatnam- Jagdalpur-Kirandul
| Visakhapatnam | Kottavalasa | Araku | Koraput | Jeypore | Kotpar Road | Jagdalpur |
| Departure | Arvl-dep hrs | Arvl-dep hrs | Arvl- dep hrs | Arvl-dep hrs | Arvl-dep hrs | Arvl-Dep |
| 22.15hrs | 22.41 22.43 | 01.30 01.35 | 03.15 03.20 | 04.25 04.27 | 05.08 05.10 | 06.05-06.30 |
| Dilmili | Kaklur | Dantewara | Bacheli | Kirandul |
|
Arvl-dep hrs |
Arvl- dep hrs | Arvl-dep hrs | Arvl-dep hrs |
Arvl |
| 07.00-07.02 | 07.33-07.35 | 08.10-08.12 | 08.45-08.47 | 10.00hrs |
08511 Kirandul- Jagdalpur-Visakhapatnam
| Kirandul | Bacheli | Dantewara | Kaklur | Dilmili | Jagdalpur | Kotpar Road |
| Departure | Arvl- dep | Arvl-dep | Arvl-dep | Arvl-dep | Arvl-dep hrs | Arvl-dep |
| 15.00hrs | 15.25-15.27 | 15.56-15.58 | 16.32-16.34 | 17.02-17.04 | 19.05-19.30 | 20.00-20.02 |
| Jeypore | Koraput | Araku | Kottavalasa | Visakhapatnam |
| Arvl-dep | Arvl- dep hrs | Arvl- dep hrs | Arvl- dep hrs |
Arvl |
| 20.33-20.35 | 21.55 22.00 | 23.35 23.40 | 02.18 02.20 | 03.00hrs |
Note: At present the 08511/08512 Special express train is running in diverted route via Vizianagaram, Rayagada, Koraput as the Bridge No. 249 in the Chimidipalli-Borraguhalu section in Kottavalasa-Kirandul Section of Waltair Division was damaged due to incessant rains leading to boulder fall in September-2017. This train will run in diverted route till further advice.
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AKS/MKV/DK
The New Electronic Interlocking System at Kharagpur Junction is India’s Largest and one of the Largest in the World
Commissioning of Electronic Interlocking System was Accomplished in Record Time Ensuring Minimum Traffic Disruptions and Passenger Inconvenience
Electronic Interlocking System at Kharagpur Junction will Ensure Smooth Movement of Trains over South Eastern Railway
India’s largest state of the art, Electronic Interlocking (EI) system of 800 routes has been commissioned at Kharagpur station in West Bengal on 19thNov2017 at 18:12 hrs. This EI system, also one of the largest in the World, replaces the old Route Relay Interlocking system with 423 routes.
Kharagpur Junction in West Bengal, a gateway to the Eastern Metropolis of Kolkata from the South and the West, is one of the most important Railway stations of Eastern India. Everyday this station deals around 116 pairs of Mail/Express, goods and suburban trains with thousands of passengers.
Final work of commissioning was taken up during a block of 12 hours. Preparations for commissioning of this Electronic Interlocking commenced about 18 months back and involved hundreds of thousands of man-hours of installation and testing. Generally, work of this nature and magnitude, involving major yard remodeling, is commissioned by resorting to non-interlocked working for several days, resulting in severe disruption of railway traffic and public inconvenience from cancellation and late running of trains. To avoid such a situation, innovative planning was done for commissioning the work in a traffic block of 12 hours, thereby ensuring bare minimum traffic disruptions and passenger inconvenience. It speaks volumes of the planning and preparation by South Eastern Railway that commissioning was finally achieved in 10 hours i.e. two hours ahead of stiff target of 12 hours.
The commissioning of the new Electronic Interlocking has integrated (i) two additional platforms at Kharagpur Junction (ii) 3rd line from Howrah side and 2nd line from Adra side at Kharagpur Junction. Besides, it has ensured operation of down goods departure yard from the main Electronic Interlocking system at Kharagpur Junction.
To ensure highest level of availability and flexibility, this EI has been provided in a distributed manner with the interlocking distributed over 9 zones interconnected with highly reliable Optical Fibre Cables (OFC) in a ring configuration. This has also resulted in major reduction in use of copper cables which is not only unreliable, difficult to maintain, prone to theft but also costly. Facility has been provided for the setting of routes and clearing of signals from electronic Video Display Unit (VDU) using “Mouse & Key Board”.
With the commissioning of EI system at Kharagpur Junction the movement of trains over South Eastern Railway will get eased up considerably and result in improved punctuality of Mail/Express trains and increase in average speed of goods trains
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AKS/MKV/ENS
14 नवंबर भाषा रेल मंत्री पीयूष गोयल ने आज कहा कि उन्होंने अधिकारियों से कहा है कि जब पटरियों की मरम्मत का काम चल रहा हो तब वह किसी के भी अनुरोध पर उस ट्रैक से ट्रेनों को जाने ना दें क्योंकि पटरी की मरम्मत का काम सुरक्षा के लिए जरूरी है।
गोयल ने यहां संवाददाताओं से कहा कि जरूरत वाली जगहों पर पुरानी पटरियों की जगह नयी पटरियां डालने का काम रेलवे की सुरक्षा के लिए जरूरी है और अब तक हासिल की गयी सभी नयी पटरियों का इस काम में इस्तेमाल किया जा रहा है।
उन्होंने कहा, मैंने अपने अधिकारियों से कहा कि नयी पटरियां डालने के कारण रेल यातायात के अवरूद्ध होने
पर अगर मैं भी ट्रेन को गुजरने देने के लिए उन्हें फोन करूं तो भी उसे गुजरने नहीं दिया जाए।
रेल मंत्री ने कहा कि मंत्रालय का 2017-18 तक पुरानी पटरियों की जगह 4,000-4,500 लंबी नयी पटरियां डालने का लक्ष्य है।
गोयल ने कहा, नयी पटरियां डालना हमारी सर्वोच्च प्राथमिकता है और बजट में इसके लिए कोई रोक नहीं है। मैं उम्मीद करता हूं कि 2017-18 रेल इतिहास में ऐसा पहली बार वह समय होगा जब मंत्रालय नयी पटरियां डालने का अपना लक्ष्य पूरा कर लेगा।
Source: https://navbharattimes.indiatimes.com/india/railway-minister-told-officials-do-not-train-during-the-work-on-the-track/articleshow/61647258.cms
14-November-2017 16:42 IST
This comprehensive training programme is being launched under the name “Project Saksham”.
The week-long training in skills and domain knowledge will be imparted to all the employees of Indian Railways.
The focus of all such training is to ‘make a difference’ to the job performance.
Under the direction of Minister of Railways & Coal, Shri Piyush Goyal, a comprehensive plan for imparting training to all employees of Indian Railways is being prepared with a view to upgrade skill & knowledge. This comprehensive training programme named as “Project Saksham” will help boost productivity and efficiency.
Under this plan, all employees in each zone will be put through a week’s training in skills and knowledge relevant to their work area over next one year. A communication to this effect from Chairman Railway Board, Shri Ashwani Lohani, has been sent to all General Managers of zonal railways and railways production unit.
General Managers have been advised that such priority training need should be quickly identified for each category of employees (employees can be grouped into their work areas) based on the needs of respective zone. Identification of training needs and formulation of planned training calendar will be required to be completed by December 31st, 2017, ensuring that each employee is imparted training.
It has been emphasized that while continuous learning and education/training has been an integral philosophy and approach of the Railways, there is a need to do a concentrated capsule of training for all employees in a short period of time to boost their productivity and efficiency. This training programme will fulfill this need.
With growing rail network, new trains, different high quality services designed by the railways and the promise of the government to deliver superior and safe rail services and growing expectation of our passengers and commuters for better amenities and services, it is imperative that the railway employees rise to the occasion to deliver on the promise. Employees can and do deliver only when they have the right skills, knowledge and the mindset to deliver to the new standards of excellence that the organization hold from them all. This training will help achieve these objectives.
This training shall be a five-day on the job training or as classroom training in Railway Training Centre depending on the nature of training. However, the reporting managers of all employees receiving training will be actively involved in the Pre-training and post training process to ensure that the benefits of training get reflected on the job performance and there is improvement within a short time after the training is imparted. The focus of all such training will be to ‘make a difference’ to the job performance of all departments and employees and thus Indian Railways.
The training, as per the calendar, will be completed within 9 months. General Managers have been directed to personally monitor the completion of the plans and their progress. The zone will also devise a few metrics to monitor the impact of Project Saksham.
This training will not only upgrade skill of each of the employees but also go a long-way in improving the performance of the Indian Railways.
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Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is helping the Indian Railways use its satellite-based system to check accidents at unmanned railway crossings and track train movements on a real-time basis.
Working on a pilot project with Isro, the railways has installed space agency-developed integrated circuit (IC) chips on some train engines. The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (or NaVIC) will be used to warn road users of approaching trains through hooters installed at unmanned road crossings.
Tapan Misra, director of Ahmedabad-based Space Applications Centre (SAC), confirmed that “Isro and the Indian Railways have been working together on this pilot project since June”. Explaining the functioning of the satellite-based system, Misra said, “A hooter will be activated as soon as it gets signal from the IC chip installed on a train when its engine is at a distance of 500 metres to 4 km from the crossing. The hooter, linked to the navigation system, will thus warn road users about the approaching train. It will become louder as the train comes near the crossing and will fall silent after the train has passed.”
The SAC director said, “Under the pilot project, IC chips have been installed on five engines of trains on different routes. The testing on the satellite-based hooter system has been going on since June to check if it is reliable and can function under different climatic conditions.”
He said, “Isro is using its constellation of seven navigation satellites (IRNSS or NaVIC) for the railway safety system as the technology, once the pilot project is over successfully, will be installed on all trains across the country in phased manner.”
Misra said, “The satellite-based system will also be used for tracking trains for disseminating information about their movement on a real-time basis.” He said, “The system will also help the railways map the area covered by trains. The technology will come in handy at the time of a railway accident when it can be used to ascertain the exact location of a train.”
The push for using the space technology for the railway safety system came after PM Narendra Modi, during a national meet on September 7, 2015, asked all central ministries and state governments to make the most of the Isro technology to provide good governance.
Safety at unmanned level crossings is a cause for concern for the railways as these crossings witness maximum accidents. The national transporter had explored various ways to address the issue before settling for the Isro system. There are about 7,254 unmanned railway crossings in the country which account for around 40% of accidents involving the railways. There are about 18,000 manned level crossings.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/railways-using-isro-tech-to-avoid-accidents-at-unmanned-crossings/articleshow/61635323.cms
Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Ministry of Coal
15-November-2017 17:54 IST
Coal India Limited and Railways jointly succeed in loading 250 coal rakes on 14th November, 2017 which is an all time high achievement for the month of November.
The synergetic efforts of CIL and Railways with close monitoring by the Ministries of Coal, Railways and Power have resulted in this unprecedented growth in coal off-take and improved despatch for power sector in particular.
CIL and Railways are now aiming for loading of 266 coal rakes/day.
The growth in coal despatch to power sector in the last three months came as a big help for coal based power plants despite the drop in generation from hydro, nuclear as well as imported coal based plants.
In a major achievement, the synergetic efforts of Coal India Limited (CIL) and Railways with close monitoring by the Ministries of Coal, Railways and Power have resulted in unprecedented growth in coal off-take and improved despatch of coal for power sector in particular. Strengthening coal transportation and coal production effectively, Coal India Limited loaded 250 rakes of goods train through Indian Railways system on 14 November 2017, an all time high achievement for the month of November to ensure smooth coal supply. Out of these rakes, 223 rakes were exclusively loaded for thermal power stations across the country.
Achieving a loading of 250 rakes in a day in the month of November has set a new record. This achievement has been in spite of the continuation of sporadic rains in some of the coalfields. Normally, loading at such levels is attained from late December when the onset of favourable environment helps in ramping up coal production.
CIL and Railways are now jointly working on a strategy to enhance loading target to 266 coal rakes per-day which will further help both power and non-power sector in meeting their demands for coal.
The growth in coal despatch to power sector in August, September and October of the current Fiscal has been 20%, 21% and 18% respectively as compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year. This has helped coal based power plants in meeting the spurt in demand of festive and paddy season, despite the drop in generation from hydro, nuclear as well as imported coal based plants.
CIL is poised to contribute load of 300 rakes through Indian Railways which includes about 35 rakes for coal beneficiation and coal lifted through road for loading from Goods Shed sidings of Indian Railways.
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