Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

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vsunder
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

How destressing is done on WDFC


https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1PdgmtGXXN8

Machines for flash butt welding are from Holland Corp.,Crete,Illinois. A primer on destressing


https://www.irfca.org/docs/stress-free-temp.html

Rails on DFC are LWRs, long welded rails 260m in length. They are formed by welding together 130m sections at the steel plant. Points allow trains on the DFC to move to loop lines at 50 kmph, while on regular IR trains exit from the mainline to loopline at 15-20 kmph.

All these technologies that are coming in will prove fundamental for HSR.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by SBajwa »

Thank you Vsundar ji. Your posts are gem of the posts. I look forward to read them.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

@SBajwa: Thanks my pleasure. Its here finally, End of Train Telemetry Device. In the US its called Wilma.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg4fvn33VKY

These devices communicate with a display in the drivers cab. The frequencies at which the device at the front communicates with the device at the rear, is a bit lower than the frequency at which the rear communicates with the front. Railfans can listen to the chirps on a receiver they can buy or build and be warned of an approaching train. If there is a decrease in brake pipe pressure at the rear, the EOTT device can apply emergency brakes.

452.9375 MHZ front to rear

457.9375 MHZ rear to front

^^^ Frequencies that will be used by IR for the EOTT devices.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD7LDQiwWt8

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/End-of-train_device
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

The shape of things to come on IR.

Hot wheels and hot ends are common issues. Hot ends are defective journal bearings on wheels that get very hot and melt and seize and eventually cause derailment. Hot wheels are wheels that have become out of shape, not round anymore due to pieces breaking off and then causing a derailment. Currently IR does these inspections manually. A man squats by the side of the track and as the train rolls by does a manual inspection which at best can be cursory. At night next to the platform there is a powerful searchlight in a box, the searchlight is turned on and the hope is to catch a hot wheel or dragging wheel or something hanging which is dragging along the ground. This is again a very crude way to check the health of a freight or passenger train. Automated methods using IR (infra Red)beams that check temperature coupled to an axle counter are available. The axle counter nails down the exact axle on the rake where there is an issue and sends info via a fiber optic link to a control room and to a display on the train itself maybe part of the HoD the head on display in the cab that alerts the crew to stop the train immediately. HoD will be part of the Wilma and EOTT devices I mentioned earlier. Here is how these systems work in the US. I also have attached info about the OMRS system that IR is proposing to use to eliminate the manual man squatting by the track system.

I am also attaching the detailed RDSO specification document as to IR requirements for End of Train telemetry devices. Notice the document calls for repeaters to amplify signals of EoTT in tunnels and deep cuttings where attenuation can take place leading to uncalled emergency brake application.

https://youtu.be/g4kj2glv4dY


https://www.itln.in/indian-railways-ado ... -detection


https://rdso.indianrailways.gov.in/work ... 051018.pdf

Panipat yard was used a test for the first automated fault detector, installed in 2017. Based on the experience about 40 yards will be converted to smart yards.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

https://twitter.com/i/status/1461676382514126855

Electric loco trial completed on 123 km section of EDFC from Chirailipaithu (end of EDFC currently) beyond Son Nagar in Bihar and Ganj Khwaja first station on the Grand Chord from Mughalsarai/DDU. Commissioning is close, lifting some burden on the Grand Chord. Grand Chord is triple lined but about 60 freight rakes pass on it in each direction. There is a train every 5 minutes.

Sections left on the main part of EDFC

Dadri to Khurja 45 km was to be done Dec 2020, no sign of trials.

Khurja to Bhaupur/Kanpur 343 km commissioned.

Bhaupur to Shujaatpur 180km completion Dec 2021, no trials yet. Major work Rail over rail flyover at Bhimsen outside Kanpur over the Kanpur to Jhansi line. No major bridges, flat terrain.

Shujaatpur---Prayagraj----Mirzapur-----Chunar----DDU/Mughalsarai 206km. Completion date June 2022. Major work, bridge over Yamuna at Prayagraj, bridge over Tamsa near Mirzapur, two rail over rail flyovers at Prayagraj on the Prayagraj--Jabalpur---Mumbai line and rail over rail flyover at Chunar over Chunar to Billi Jn. and Renukoot line.

DDU/Mughalsarai to Ganj Khwaja 9 km, major work rail over rail flyover over Grand Chord, just launched delayed by LA issues. Resolved with the cooperation of the UP govt.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1461915777129320456

https://twitter.com/i/status/1461915777129320456

Ganj Khwaja to Chirailipaithu 123 km close to commissioning. ^^^ eloco trials over.

Chirailipaithu to Dankuni WB, unknown, needs all sorts of environmental clearance in forest areas of Gujja Handi ghat section to maintain 1:200 ruling gradient of DFC and not the higher gradients on the Grand Chord, plus cooperation of Jharkhand, WB and Bihar governments.

Jeonathpur will be an important intermodal terminal about 10km from Mughalsarai towards Prayagraj. IW-1 Varanasi port on Ganga is here, IR, DFC and also NH-7 and other major roads meet here.

As speeds increase all these technologies will prove fundamental. Cannot have a guy eyeballing wheels as they whiz past and detecting a hot wheel or bearing. At higher speeds either freight on the DFC or passenger a seized bearing a consequent derailment will be catastrophic. Likewise Kavach brings in in cab signalling and uniformity of welding and welding protocols gives better quality welds. Cannot have this jugaad thermite welding where some old tin is used with contamination of materials etc. Theo_Fidel used to lament about the quality of thermite welding on IR. He will sure be happy to see the quality control in place slowly on IR and the protocols at least on DFC for welding.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

6/7 tunnels on Phase 1 of the strategic Bhanupali-Bilaspur-Manali-Leh line are complete.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilaspur%E2%80%93Leh_line

PM Modi had come down hard on the slow pace of this project. Still a long ways to go. Nothing happened on this project for decades. Phase 1 is to Beri from Bhanupali. The longest tunnel of 750m which took 2 years just had a breakthrough few days ago. This railway line from Beri to Bhanupalli(on IR network) will cut the road distance from 106km to 63km. PM had suggested that tunnels on this line be made dual use, that is can be used by both vehicles and trains.



https://granthshala.in/bhanupally-bilas ... -to-build/

Total distance of the project to Leh is 498km.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

In the US hot box detectors to detect hot journal bearings are located 24-48km apart. The detector will trigger an alarm if one of two things happen, either the temperature of the journal bearing is 95C or more above the ambient temperature or the bearing temperature is 52C above a bearing on the same axle. Yes, there is an RDSO draft document online (you can search for it) that lists all the specs for India for forthcoming smart yards. It specifies that the Indian manufacturer supply hot box detectors that can track temperature ranges in the range 0-150C for bearings and hot wheel detectors/detection of flats etc detect temperatures in the range 0-700C. Tolerance of no more than 1-2C is allowed.


Andal yard in WB is converted to a "smart yard" and yards at Kanpur Central, Prayagraj and DDU, Deen Dayal Upadhyay were listed as being in process. However a lot more of these detectors are needed. Failure means that within 25-30 mins the temperatures will shoot up and reach dangerous levels.


Brake shoe failure detectors, coupling pin failure detectors are all part of the tender that IR put out. Studies published in transportation journals show that wheel temperatures on freight can rise to around 300C on downgrades, due to braking.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

https://m.facebook.com/yesICC/posts/pcb ... dp=1&mdf=1


^^^ For sure now it is clear the project is running very late. They had started well type foundations for this bridge on the Tapi river outside Surat on the WDFC such a long time ago and it is still incomplete in the photos posted, dated Nov 26th, today. You can see wells with no piers sticking out yet and piers in incomplete state too. In addition right after this bridge towards Mumbai is a rail over rail flyover where the WDFC jumps over the Udhna(Surat) -----Nandurbar----Jalgaon----Bhusawal line at Niyol station. No news of that. Before this there is the bridge over the Mahi river. That is south of Anand(Gujarat). Interestingly they have used an open web girder design for this Tapi bridge while for Narmada, Sabarmati(this bridge is complete) and Mahi rivers the bridges are underslung. Open web girder is more expensive as they have to accommodate double stack container freight for the WDFC so have to be much taller than the standard open web girder bridges on the EDFC. This bridge is north of Surat. First the DFC from Ahmedabad is running west of IR. At Gothangam north of Surat, it will jump over IR tracks(west to east over the IR tracks) and in a wide arc east of Surat avoid the town. It is on this arc around Surat, it crosses the Tapi on this bridge, goes around Surat, meets the IR tracks towards Mumbai after Surat at Bhestan, but does not jump over IR tracks and runs east of IR tracks through Navsari, Billimora, Valsad, Vapi, Virar, Vasai Rd, where it leaves IR tracks towards Mumbai and instead starts running parallel to IR tracks towards Diva (on CR) from Vasai. It runs North of the IR tracks(Vasai to Diva) through to Kopar where it jumps over CSMT to Thane tracks(6 of them) whose piling works for the flyover I posted above. Then it is the home stretch to JNPT. Its just a lot of work left. Yes closer to completion as DFCCIL keeps writing on Twitter but massive ullu banoing also.

What's with that incompetent Rail Mantri nowadays and his equally incompetent acolytes. He seems to be running fancy dress trains where waiters are dressed as monks. Suresh Prabhu initiated capacity augmentation, station redevelopment and went about it quietly and succeeded. Almost every project of doubling, tripling stations like Habibganj, Gandhinagar connecting NE state capitals and getting the act of the DFCs together and moving is due to him. All of these are coming now slowly to fruition. Goyal too was focused on DFCs monitoring progress and sending Suresh Angadi the junior minister to inspect and he did it too with enthusiasm. This useless guy seems to be in search of a mission and unable to find one. His fancy dress ball, and Gaurav Bharat train etc all seem to blow up in the face, or have no lasting value. His acolytes one of whom carries a dual brief as MoS Textiles and Railways seem to be unsure of their briefs. The textile lady forgets her brief and confuses them, she goes to inspect the Rishikesh -Karnaprayag tunnels, dressed as if she is going to a dance or to inaugurate a fashion show for Pochampalli sarees. Somehow I feel the Rail Mantri feels compelled to do something and attract Modi's attention and so his outburst of anger and other gimmicks. Not that the Railway Board are exactly paragons of virtue, but projects need a firm hand of capable administrators who will ensure that personal peeves do not get in the way and the projects are completed on time. Gadkari manages to do it even though he has no gold medal from shady universities and did not study in a community college in India.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

The Mount Rd. rag, voice of the Pipples Republic of Cheen en Eendia reports that the entire 65,000 km of IR will be under Kavach, train anti-collision device and in cab signalling. So no more ALP craning his/her head out of the window searching for signal sighting board of two yellow horizontal bands with a yellow circle between the bands indicating a signal approaching. At 160kmph a missed signal or SPAD event(signal passing at danger) is instant nirvana or a meeting with yamraj. So the earlier report of SCR expanding its kavach network to 630km has been greatly enlarged in scope. Note the site of the announcement----Hyderabad, where Medha Servomotors is based who not only built the first Kavach unit for test for SCR but also supplied the wheel sets for Train-18. It is good that IR rejected European Train Control System -II for its future needs and canceled the ETCS-II test between Mathura and Vadodara and went in for local design and production.


Possibly system wide installation of Kavach is one of the goals of the new Rail mantri.


https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hy ... 693615.ece
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Rahul M »

excellent news !
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

@ Sachin: One of the questions you ask/ asked is about sectional controllers.The news article from the Hindu states clearly IR is moving to the “modernized central
control system”. This is also worth noting.

Centralized control of traffic is one of the spin offs from the DFC to IR and as I had anticipated DFC will be the portal through which modern technology will reach IR. Other technologies that DFCs are using and will find its way to IR are NTC machines for laying track, 2x25kv power for RE, flash butt system fir welding, SCADA systems and level crossing free movement of trains. This already is happening since the ROBs and RUBs that are being built for the DFCs also benefit IR since IR tracks in most cases run parallel to the DFC.

It is worth noting that the earlier news article I posted on increasing speeds between Delhi and Mumbai calls for the construction of 19 new traction sub stations. It can only mean that the railway realizes that higher speeds cannot be achieved by single phase 25 kv OHE. DFCs are on 2x25 kv systems. These single phase 1x25 kv currently on IR do not have the superior tractive power of 2x25 kv systems and in addition 5 kv or more voltage loss is seen at the end of the 40 km stretch from where the power is supplied into the system. Amount of locos drawing power in a given section also contributes to voltage drop.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Sachin »

vsunder wrote:@ Sachin: One of the questions you ask/ asked is about sectional controllers.The news article from the Hindu states clearly IR is moving to the “modernized central control system”. This is also worth noting.
Good to know that. Introduction of Automatic Block Signals in all trunk/major lines plus centralised control is all needed to make improvements in speed. A lot of time consuming processes done by Station Masters etc will be made redundant. Like in many other countries station masters would soon have to become 'station managers', with duties being administrative and non-technical.

BTW; may be this is a question of IRFCA type forums :). The 'future of Indian Railways'. At times I feel that cheaper air travel options and better road transport facilities will sooner or later scuttle IR's advantage on long haul of passengers. May be like in US, IR will then have to focus on goods transport.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Aditya_V »

Sachin wrote:
vsunder wrote:@ Sachin: One of the questions you ask/ asked is about sectional controllers.The news article from the Hindu states clearly IR is moving to the “modernized central control system”. This is also worth noting.
Good to know that. Introduction of Automatic Block Signals in all trunk/major lines plus centralised control is all needed to make improvements in speed. A lot of time consuming processes done by Station Masters etc will be made redundant. Like in many other countries station masters would soon have to become 'station managers', with duties being administrative and non-technical.

BTW; may be this is a question of IRFCA type forums :). The 'future of Indian Railways'. At times I feel that cheaper air travel options and better road transport facilities will sooner or later scuttle IR's advantage on long haul of passengers. May be like in US, IR will then have to focus on goods transport.
Nope, given our Volumes for travel in the 200KM-800Km range , Rail travel can be the preferred option- too long to drive, too short to fly.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

Somebody had queried above ^^^ about ICF and LHB coaches. I wrote that there are 903 ICF rakes and with current levels of conversion and factory output it would take 8 years to completely convert the fleet to LHB coaches. I also wrote that a proposal is on the table to increase output to 5000 coaches per annum at selected plants, thus possibly halving the conversion time to 4 years. Plus possibly allowing private players manufacture Train- 18 sets. It seems the government has acted on the proposal to increase output to 5000 LHB coaches per year at its Rae Bareli plant:

https://mobile.twitter.com/i/web/status ... 5519510529
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Sachin »

vsunder wrote:entire 65,000 km of IR will be under Kavach, train anti-collision device and in cab signalling.
By any chance do you have the specs on the latest Kavach application/devices? There was an earlier attempt which relied heavily on GPS positioning. The problem with that was it could not accurately determine if two trains approaching each other were on same track or on adjacent tracks. The system rolled out in UK also depended on magentic devices placed in between tracks and sensors at the bottom of the locos. In India, I guess this was tried out but there were rascals who vandalised the equipment fixed in between the tracks.
RDSO Specifications for Kavach is available online.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by A Nandy »

https://www.financialexpress.com/infras ... 2/2365475/
From early next year, Indian Railways is likely to start running the third Vande Bharat Express train. The shells of at least five semi-high speed train Vande Bharat Express trains are in the final stages of completion. Also, electrics are expected to be fitted soon. The ICF is hopeful about rolling out one rake by March 2022, according to various news reports. The first two takes of Train-18, the country’s first semi-high speed trains, were rolled out by ICF in the year 2018, which are presently being operated as Vande Bharat Expresses between Delhi and Varanasi as well as between Delhi and Katra. PM Modi, on Independence Day this year, had announced that 75 such trains will be launched in 75 weeks, connecting different parts of the country.
Some efforts to maintain the current rakes:
https://swarajyamag.com/news-brief/worn ... h-ambience
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by chetak »

Rail ministry probing ‘irregularities’ in RailTel contracts


Rail ministry probing ‘irregularities’ in RailTel contracts

Abhinandan Mishra,
December 25, 2021.

New Delhi: A complaint filed by a senior serving officer of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) informing the agency of the alleged financial malpractices indulged in by top officers of RailTel, a public sector undertaking (PSU) under the Indian Railways, has led to the initiation of an internal probe by the Railway Board. The malpractices, as per the complaint, are being indulged in so that “favoured” vendors can get high value government contracts.

The CBI, however, is yet to initiate a formal probe into the matter, even after more than 90 days of the said complaint being filed. The exhaustive complaint, which was filed by a sitting Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) of the agency on 20 September, has been shared with the Special Crime Branch, CBI, Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Chief Vigilance Commission (CVC), apart from the Ashwini Vaishnaw-led Railway Ministry that promptly initiated an internal probe from their end.

The Sunday Guardian has accessed a copy of the complaint, which has named RailTel officials, who, as per the complaint, “manipulated” an April 2020 tender for supply, installation and testing of technology that was floated to augment the existing Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) technology over railway tracks and railway stations in the country.

DWDM is a technology used to increase bandwidth over existing fibre networks. It is pertinent to mention that RailTel has access to right of way for optical fibre cable network along 67,415 route kilometres over railway tracks and over 7,000 railway stations. In addition, RailTel has an optical fibre cable network along 8,852 route kilometres over land and buildings owned by third-parties.

The tender, as is the norm, was floated on the basis of “reverse auction basis”, as it allows purchase of goods, services by the government agency at the best competitive price from private vendors. However, due to this norm, private vendors who were being “supported” by top officials at RailTel, found themselves unfit for bidding. As a result, RailTel, as per the complaint, cancelled the said tender in June 2020, without assigning any reason and despite issuing seven corrigendum and five detailed replies to prospective vendors which were shared by the concerned officer and office of RailTel during the tendering process.

Later, another tender, as a part of augmenting the network, was floated for procurement of routers for which the concerned officer used the “reverse auction basis”, as a result of which a price that was 40% less than the lowest bid was arrived at, thereby proving that reverse auction basis was the best method to save government money, but it also, as per the complaint, took away the capability of the private vendors to meet the “demand” of the top officials.

As a result of this, the concerned officer who initiated this procurement, was removed from his position by RailTel management and sent to another department, which is not his expertise. It is pertinent to mention that the said officer was recruited by Government of India through a lateral entry process and the GoI is spending a lot of money for his expertise.

The complaint further alleges that the top management of RailTel, with the objective to allow a private vendor of its choice to get a contract for supply of manpower, floated a tender of Rs 48 crore for a period of five years. This was done despite the Railway Ministry pushing for merging of multiple network operating centres being operated by RailTel into fewer units. Later, the contract period was reduced to three years so that a particular vendor could be benefited but even that tender was cancelled without any reason being assigned despite six corrigendum being issued as the private vendor was not meeting the requirement. As a remedy, a “round-tripping” of the contract was done so that another affiliated vendor got the tender at a much higher price despite the same amount of manpower being offered as was in the previous year.

In subsequent tendering for network tools, the reverse auction basis was done away with, as explained and proved in the complaint through the multiple annexures that had been attached with it.

As per the complaint, the repeated cancellation of the tenders, until the favoured vendors got selected and intentionally splitting the work to avoid reverse auction is against the guidelines set by the Chief Vigilance Commission (CVC) and that of General Financial Rules set by the Ministry of Finance.

The Sunday Guardian’s email to the CBI spokesperson seeking updates on the matter, if any, did not elicit any response. Emails to Railtel and the Railway Ministry, too, did not generate a response.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by sanjayc »

Train18 engineer alleges conspiracy against him

Shubhranshu, the engineer who led Team ICF that made Train18, which was later flagged off as Vande Bharat Express, has formally written to the Railway Board alleging that a malicious campaign was on in the last two years to destroy his career.

With the Central Vigilance Commission exonerating him of all charges, the then Principal Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai, has written to the Ministry of Railways that he should be elevated as General Manager as per rules and then considered for promotion as Chairman Railway Board and Chief Executive Officer, sources in the Railways told The Hindu on Thursday. Mr. Shubhranshu is presently Chief Administrative Officer, Rail Wheel Plant in Bela.

“The malicious campaign, lasting over two years, to malign me and destroy my career has finally been called out by the CVC, who have exonerated me in all vigilance cases fabricated against me. Now, my position in the GM panel for the years 2019-20, 2020 and 2021 should be restored and all benefits granted,” the sources quoted Mr. Shubhranshu as saying in his letter to the Chairman, Railway Board/Chief Executive Officer.

File shelved
Though his case was moved as per rules following the intervention of the Minister for Railways on January 11, 2021 for restoration of his name in the GM panel even as the vigilance cases existed, the file was shelved for reasons “unknown”.

“You are requested to take the above proposal to fruition and post me as General Manager without any further delay. The 2-year tenure rule doesn’t apply in my case since the restoration of benefits and seniority would be with retrospective effect,” he said.

Mr Shubhranshu said that consequent upon restoration of benefits he should be considered for promotion to the position of Chairman Railway Board or Chief Executive Officer and Member (Traction & Rolling Stock).

“Please ensure that no posting of any GM is done ahead of me and no proposal for CRB & CEO and Member (Traction & Rolling Stock) is sent without including my name for consideration,” he said, adding that any further delay in granting him promotion would mean harassment and selective discrimination.

Mr. Shubhranshu along with the then ICF General Manager Sudhanshu Mani, had led the team of engineers that manufactured the first Train18 in a record 18 months' time at a cost of ₹97 crore.

The self-propelled Trainset, India’s first semi-high speed train, was later launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as Vande Bharat Express between New Delhi and Varanasi in February 2019. Months later, the second rake was made operational on the Delhi-Katra route.

Game changer train
Though the train was described as a game changer by the then Minister for Railways and the indigenously built Train18 celebrated as the most successful product of ‘Make in India’ initiative, the manufacturing of more rakes came to a grinding halt despite demand.

Amid allegations of corruption, compromises on safety and other issues, some of the key officials in the team were shifted out to insufficient posts and vigilance cases registered against them.

The making of more rakes resumed after Mr. Modi announced the operation of 75 Vande Bharat trains on the occasion of the Independence Day this year.

The Ministry floated tenders for manufacturing 58 rakes, each comprising 16 coaches. Tenders were already floated for making 44 rakes. The third rake is expected to be rolled out of ICF early 2022, railway sources added.
https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ ... 082648.ece
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vimal »

^^ I can only shake my head in shame and remorse at the behaviour of mir jaffars and jayachands that fill each and every nook and cranny of this country.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by kvraghav »

vimal wrote:^^ I can only shake my head in shame and remorse at the behaviour of mir jaffars and jayachands that fill each and every nook and cranny of this country.
Its also the lack of assertiveness of BJP ministers when it comes to Officials. Same thing happens in karnataka. How can they ignore the minsters orders and survive? The officials under BJP govts simply go out of control and loot like hell.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vayutuvan »

kvraghav wrote: Its also the lack of assertiveness of BJP ministers when it comes to Officials. Same thing happens in karnataka. How can they ignore the minsters orders and survive? The officials under BJP govts simply go out of control and loot like hell
This is not a problem unique to BJP govts. It happens under any party. The bureaucratic structure has to change.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vips »

Next 10 years to see very high level of capex in railway sector.

The next 10 years will see a very high level of capital expenditure in the railway sector as capacity growth has to be accelerated, so that by 2030 it is ahead of demand, as per the Economic Survey.

Up to 2014, capex on railway was barely Rs 45,980 crore per annum and consequently, the railway was charecterised by high levels of inefficiency and highly congested routes unable to meet the growing demand.

Post 2014, a conscious effort was made to improve the railway sector by substantially increasing the capex, according to Economic Survey 2021-22.

The capex outlay for 2021-22 is Rs 2,15,000 crore which is more than five times the 2014 level. As more projects are taken on hand and several sources of capital funding are developed, capex will increase further in coming years and the railway system will actually emerge as an engine of national growth.

The National Rail Plan lays down the road map for capacity expansion of the railway network by 2030 to cater to growth up to 2050. It envisages the creation of a future ready railway system that is able to not only meet the passenger demand but also increase the modal share of railways in freight to 40-45 per cent from the present level of 26-27 per cent.

The target of 40-45 per cent modal share for railways is necessary from the perspective of sustainability and also from the national commitments made globally for reducing emission levels.

Unlike growth, which is linear, capacity grows in surges (sawtooth curve) depending on project completion timelines.

The National Rail Plan provides a pipeline of projects, which on completion will increase railway capacity to capture 45 per cent of freight traffic. Since the railway is already having a large number of sanctioned projects that need to be completed before taking up new projects, it has been planned to increase railway capacity in two surges.

The first surge is to be provided by the Vision 2024 plan to prioritise and complete sanctioned projects so that railway capacity does not fall far behind the targeted modal share such that by the time capacity is finally created, the traffic would have shifted to another mode. To prevent further bleeding away of modal share, railway capacity enhancing projects have been categorised as super critical and critical.

“58 projects have been identified as Super Critical and are targeted for completion by December 2022. 68 projects have been identified as critical and have been targeted for completion by March 2024. These projects are focussed at increasing capacity on routes that serve major mineral, industrial hubs along with ports and major consumption centres,” it said.

In addition to these critical projects, the Ministry of Railway has also targeted 100 per cent electrification of its network by December 2023 upgrading Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Kolkata corridors to 160 kmph and also elimination of level crossings on the Golden Quadrilateral/Golden Diagonal routes.

On completion of Vision 2024 projects, in the second half of the decade, the aim is to commission new Dedicated Freight Corridors and also High Speed Passenger Corridors, besides multitracking and signalling upgradation of congested routes.

Indian Railways has been able to move millions of people and also able to keep national supply chain running, despite facing the pandemic-related challenges, the Survey said.

With a continuing focus on safety of passengers, the number of consequential train accidents has come down from 59 in 2018-19 to 55 in 2019-20 (pre-Covid) and further to 22 in 2020-21. “Despite facing the unprecedented COVID related challenges Indian railways has not only been able to move millions of people but also able to keep national supply chain running,” the Survey said. It said that despite the pandemic, revenue earning freight loading (excluding loading by Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. (KRCL) was 1230.9 million tonne in 2020-21 as compared to 1208.4 million tonne during 2019-20.

The Survey noted that passengers originating were 1250 million in 2020-21 as compared to 8086 million in 2019-20.

In addition, it said in order to strengthen the agriculture sector, as on December 31, 2021 the railway operated 1,841 Kisan Rail services, transporting approximately 6.0 lakh tonne of perishables, including fruits and vegetables.

The Survey also pointed out that capex (capital expenditure ) has been increased substantially for the railways from an average annual capex during 2009-14 of Rs 5,980 crore to Rs 2,15,058 crore during 2021-22 (BE) .

The Survey said average 1835 track km per year of new track length has been added through new-line and multi-tracking projects during 2014-2021 as compared to the average 720 track km per day during 2009-14.

The railway is also adopting indigenous new technology such as KAVACH, Vande Bharat trains and redevelopment of stations to have safe and better journey experience, it added.

According to the Survey, during 2020-21, the railway carried 1.23 billion tonne of freight and 1.25 billion passengers. Being the third largest network in the world under single management and with over 68,102 route kilometre, the railway strives to provide safe, efficient, competitive and world class transport system.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by saumitra_j »

FM announces 400 new Vande Bharat trains
In her Budget speech, the FM said "one product, one railway station" will be popularised and that 400 new Vande Bharat trains to be introduced. Under the Gati Shakti plan, the new generation trains will be developed over three years, she said, while suggesting that innovative funding be encouraged for new metro rail systems.

"400 new generation Vande Bharat trains with better energy efficiency and passenger riding experience will be manufactured during the next 3 years. A total of 100 PM ..
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vips »

400 Vande Bharat trains: Rs 40,000 crore business opportunity.

Chennai, Rolling out 400 Vande Bharat Express trains is about Rs 40,000 crore of business coupled with jobs and other spin-off benefits, said senior officials present and past -of Indian Railways.

Presenting the Union Budget for 2022-23, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said 400 new energy efficient Vande Bharat trains will be introduced in three years.

The Vande Bharat Express is a semi-high speed train designed, developed and built by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) at a frugal outlay of Rs 100 crore.

The Indian Railways officials preferring anonymity told IANS that 400 Vande Bharat trains over the next three years is not just headline catching announcement. It is about Rs 40,000 crore business opportunity that would also create 15,000 jobs and several spin -off benefits.

Presently there are only two Vande Bharat trains that are running -- Delhi to Varanasi and Delhi to Katra. "The trains without a pair are running six days a week without a breakdown till date since they were pressed into service a couple of years back. Perhaps Vande Bharat Express is the first train that is run without a pair," a senior official at ICF told IANS with pride.

It is one classic example of 'Make in India' and far cheaper than similar trains that are rolled out by foreign companies.

The train has only about 15 per cent import content which will further go down if production volumes increase, officials told IANS earlier. An ICF official said the third prototype is getting delayed due to production bottlenecks and logistical challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, how the government is going to achieve its target of 400 Vande Bharat Express trains over the next three years is the Rs 40,000 crore question.While it is really an ambitious target, it can be achieved in a staggered manner with the government giving better clarity on its plans, officials said. Indian Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the upgraded Vande Bharattrain is expected to be ready for tests in April and commercial production is expected to start in August/September, 2022.

"I would think that a more realistic target of say 100-150 trains in three years would have been better. This target itself would need very concerted and committed action by railway executives, particularly at ICF," Sudhanshu Mani, retired General Manager, ICF and the Creator of Vande Bharat Express told IANS. He said, commercial production and necessary testing of the upgraded train is expected to start only in September 2022 and hence the target should be realistic.

"Rolling out the trains in large numbers may not be an issue. But where are they going to be deployed? The routes also have to be finalised," Mani added. Continuing further Mani said ICF should start working on Vande Bharat trainsets, including the sleeper version (code named Train 19) and 300 units of aluminium body trainsets (code named Train 20).

"There can be a foreign partner for rolling out aluminium body trains. In 5/6 year's time 400 trains can be there," he remarked.

When pointed out that the train could be rolled out by other coach manufacturing facilities in the country Mani said: "Initially only ICF should roll out as they understand the technology and other aspects. Spreading out the production to other units will result in quality issues." Concurring with him, a senior official not wanting to be quoted told IANS: "Only ICF should make it. It needs special skill sets and trained people are not available in other units."

Officials also said spreading out the manufacturing not only would result in quality issues, but the ultimate death of the train that is successfully running without a hitch six days a week for the past couple of years.

While ICF would initially roll out the trainsets, the other units can take care of the maintenance works and acquire the production knowhow. The other question is the availability of the vendors. Unless the government gives a clear roadmap, vendors may not ramp up their production capacity, officials said.

"The supply chain will take time to gear up. They can supply only at a steady rate. Out of the 400 trains, during the first year only 20 trains can be rolled out and 380 trains in the remaining two years is not possible," the official added.

Further vendors and ICF officials are reluctant to touch the Vande Bharat train project after the witch hunt in the form of vigilance enquiry that was conducted and concluded recently without finding any discrepancy.

According to officials, there needs to be long term contracts say 60 trains for the next 10 years only then vendors can set up production facilities.
"Tenders and procurement process should be done in such a way that vendors can participate without worry," they added.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Prem Kumar »

^^ The Vande Bharat chief designer tweeted about how some vested group in Delhi sabotaged the train with the vigilance inquiry etc. Our biggest enemies are internal
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Cyrano »

Travelled on SCR recently on Simhapuri Express - the train set was old, decrepit and looked like it will come apart anytime. All electrical worked fine though, SCR workshops are making the most of what they have perhaps.Same observation on Narsapur Express a few year ago.

Is there a reason SCR doesnt get better train sets (passenger rakes)? Cant remember ever seeing an LHB rake on SCR.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by chetak »

Vips wrote:400 Vande Bharat trains: Rs 40,000 crore business opportunity.

Chennai, Rolling out 400 Vande Bharat Express trains is about Rs 40,000 crore of business coupled with jobs and other spin-off benefits, said senior officials present and past -of Indian Railways.

Presenting the Union Budget for 2022-23, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said 400 new energy efficient Vande Bharat trains will be introduced in three years.

The Vande Bharat Express is a semi-high speed train designed, developed and built by the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) at a frugal outlay of Rs 100 crore.

The Indian Railways officials preferring anonymity told IANS that 400 Vande Bharat trains over the next three years is not just headline catching announcement. It is about Rs 40,000 crore business opportunity that would also create 15,000 jobs and several spin -off benefits.

Presently there are only two Vande Bharat trains that are running -- Delhi to Varanasi and Delhi to Katra. "The trains without a pair are running six days a week without a breakdown till date since they were pressed into service a couple of years back. Perhaps Vande Bharat Express is the first train that is run without a pair," a senior official at ICF told IANS with pride.

It is one classic example of 'Make in India' and far cheaper than similar trains that are rolled out by foreign companies.

The train has only about 15 per cent import content which will further go down if production volumes increase, officials told IANS earlier. An ICF official said the third prototype is getting delayed due to production bottlenecks and logistical challenges due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, how the government is going to achieve its target of 400 Vande Bharat Express trains over the next three years is the Rs 40,000 crore question.While it is really an ambitious target, it can be achieved in a staggered manner with the government giving better clarity on its plans, officials said. Indian Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the upgraded Vande Bharattrain is expected to be ready for tests in April and commercial production is expected to start in August/September, 2022.

"I would think that a more realistic target of say 100-150 trains in three years would have been better. This target itself would need very concerted and committed action by railway executives, particularly at ICF," Sudhanshu Mani, retired General Manager, ICF and the Creator of Vande Bharat Express told IANS. He said, commercial production and necessary testing of the upgraded train is expected to start only in September 2022 and hence the target should be realistic.

"Rolling out the trains in large numbers may not be an issue. But where are they going to be deployed? The routes also have to be finalised," Mani added. Continuing further Mani said ICF should start working on Vande Bharat trainsets, including the sleeper version (code named Train 19) and 300 units of aluminium body trainsets (code named Train 20).

"There can be a foreign partner for rolling out aluminium body trains. In 5/6 year's time 400 trains can be there," he remarked.

When pointed out that the train could be rolled out by other coach manufacturing facilities in the country Mani said: "Initially only ICF should roll out as they understand the technology and other aspects. Spreading out the production to other units will result in quality issues." Concurring with him, a senior official not wanting to be quoted told IANS: "Only ICF should make it. It needs special skill sets and trained people are not available in other units."

Officials also said spreading out the manufacturing not only would result in quality issues, but the ultimate death of the train that is successfully running without a hitch six days a week for the past couple of years.

While ICF would initially roll out the trainsets, the other units can take care of the maintenance works and acquire the production knowhow. The other question is the availability of the vendors. Unless the government gives a clear roadmap, vendors may not ramp up their production capacity, officials said.

"The supply chain will take time to gear up. They can supply only at a steady rate. Out of the 400 trains, during the first year only 20 trains can be rolled out and 380 trains in the remaining two years is not possible," the official added.

Further vendors and ICF officials are reluctant to touch the Vande Bharat train project after the witch hunt in the form of vigilance enquiry that was conducted and concluded recently without finding any discrepancy.

According to officials, there needs to be long term contracts say 60 trains for the next 10 years only then vendors can set up production facilities.
"Tenders and procurement process should be done in such a way that vendors can participate without worry," they added.
It is a known fact that there are many long established cartels that control the entire supply chain and labor ecosystem of the IR.

That is why railway board appointments and other senior level appointments like GMs etc are coveted and big bucks are on offer to the powers that be.

officials, both serving and retired, as well as, contractors are complicit and for a new entrant to break into this cozy ecosystem needs big bucks to grease the palms of these vested interest groups

the space and defence sectors have also followed such practices and cartelized themselves with ex govt employees ruling the roost.

further, the foreign companies also have great interest in blocking off the indigenous production of systems like the train 18 because of their fear that Indian companies may very soon start to export into markets serviced by them and undercut the goras in price.

Mani has certainly stirred up a huge hornet's nest and very rightly so

care to take a guess as to how many super capable people like Mani may have retired quietly without making waves because they valued their peace of mind and were non-confrontanist in their dealings and didn't buck the system
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by chetak »

chenab arch bridge in J&K, the world’s highest rail bridge


Photos: Twitter/@RailMinIndia

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Photo: Twitter/@AshwiniVaishnaw
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vips »

Udhampur-Srinagar- Baramulla Rail link project- Longest tunnel T-49 connected.

The main tunnel of T-49, the longest tunnel of Indian Railways, between Sumber and Arpinchala station of Katra-Banihal section of Udhampur- Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project has been connected successfully on Tuesday, informed Northern Railways.

"A major milestone has been achieved by executing break-through of Tunnel T49 between Sumber and Arpinchala Station on ongoing Katra-Banihal Section. It is worthwhile to mention that line and level of the tunnel is precisely achieved in break-through," the Northern Railways said in a statement.

Out of 272 km length of Udhampur Srinagar Baramulla Rail Link Project (USBRL) project, 161 km has already been commissioned and operationalized.

The work of the intervening stretch of 111 km between Katra Banihal is under progress at rapid pace, railways said.

"Katra-Banihal Section is traversing through hilly terrain of lower Himalaya's, in which Geology is a major challenge. It has several major bridges and very long tunnels which are under construction at different stages," it said.

T49 is a tunnel of length 12.758 km long and it is going to be the longest tunnel of Indian Railway surpassing Peer Panjal Tunnel of 11.2 km length constructed by USBRL on the Banihal-Qazigund section.

The south portal (SP) of Tunnel T-49 is located in picturesque Sumber Village at a distance of 45 km from District H.Q. Ramban of Jammu and Kashmir at an altitude of 1400 meters, while the North Portal (NP) of the tunnel is located near Arpinchala village Tehsil Khari, District Ramban, in Mahu-Mangat Valley at an altitude of 1600 meters approximately.

T-49 tunnel is having two tubes -- one is the main tunnel and other being escape tunnel. The tunnel has been constructed by NATM (New Austrian Tunneling Method), which is a modern technique of drill and blast method. The Cross-section profile of the tunnel is modified horseshoe-shaped. This tunnel length is very long.

In order to facilitate construction, three adits namely Urnihal Adit, Hingni Adit and Kundan Adit have also been constructed. The tunnel has a ruling gradient 1 in 80 and designed speed of 100 kmph. As per International standards, the Escape Tunnel being constructed parallel to the Main Tunnel is connected by cross passages at an interval of 375m to facilitate rescue and restoration work.

The work of construction was entrusted by NR to IRCON International Ltd. which has assigned works in two packages to HCC and AFCONS. HCC is executing the work of 5.1 km length from South Portal and AFCONS is executing the length of 7.658 km from North Portal.

The railways said that several challenges were encountered in the course of construction such as shear zone, perched aquifer, and highly jointed rock mass, rock problems of squeezing and high ingress of water. The team of experienced engineers of Northern Railway, IRCON and the executing agencies HCC and AFCONS successfully negotiated all challenges and made possible to achieve this major breakthrough.

During construction activities of the tunnel local population was employed by agencies for various works, in the region which has changed the overall socio-economic landscape.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Mukhi »

It has been long since we have heard anything from vusnder. Hope all is well.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by ritesh »

A Nandy wrote:https://www.financialexpress.com/infras ... 2/2365475/
From early next year, Indian Railways is likely to start running the third Vande Bharat Express train. The shells of at least five semi-high speed train Vande Bharat Express trains are in the final stages of completion. Also, electrics are expected to be fitted soon. The ICF is hopeful about rolling out one rake by March 2022, according to various news reports. The first two takes of Train-18, the country’s first semi-high speed trains, were rolled out by ICF in the year 2018, which are presently being operated as Vande Bharat Expresses between Delhi and Varanasi as well as between Delhi and Katra. PM Modi, on Independence Day this year, had announced that 75 such trains will be launched in 75 weeks, connecting different parts of the country.
Some efforts to maintain the current rakes:
https://swarajyamag.com/news-brief/worn ... h-ambience
There is this YouTube video about Katra VB express. Quite a detailed one I feel.
https://youtu.be/n8mkZ0qsslI

This guys has covered Varanasi one as well, which I have not yet watched.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vips »

World’s tallest railway bridge in Reasi likely to be completed by Dec 2023.

An engineering marvel in the making, the world’s tallest railway bridge being constructed over Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir’s Reasi district is likely to come up by December next year.

“After completing the main arch, work on laying the track will be taken up shortly. Once the track is completed, it will give impetus to the allied works. If everything goes well, we hope to complete it by December next year,” said an official spokesperson. Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had recently shared a picture of the arch over the clouds.

The bridge is 1,315-metre long and will have the distinction of being the highest railway bridge in the world at 359 metres above the river bed level. It is 35 metres higher than the Eiffel Tower in France. Chenab Bridge has 17 spans with main arch span of 467 metres.

This railway bridge is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar- Baramulla Rail Link Project, which is the most challenging project being undertaken post-independence by Indian Railways. The 111-km long stretch is being built at a cost of ₹27,949 crore.

In view of importance of this project in providing seamless and hassle-free connectivity in Jammu and Kashmir, it was declared a “national project” in 2002.

Northern Railway has entrusted the construction of the iconic Chenab Bridge to Konkan Railway as an executing agency. The main arch of the bridge is 467 metres linear length (curvilinear length is 550 metres), resting on two massive foundations on dolomite limestone hillock across mighty Chenab river. The overall weight of main arch is 10,619 metric tonnes.

The erection of the arch has been undertaken from both ends with the help of massive cable cranes of cumulative carrying capacity of about 35MT, using incremental launching by supporting cantilever portion with prestressed stay cables.

The structural detailing of the Chenab bridge, including the main arch, has been carried out in the most sophisticated Tekla software. The Tekla model provides a walkthrough in the bridge, enabling the fabrication engineers to understand the complex details. Technically, the construction of main arch was most significant event, as this nature of work had been undertaken for the first time in country and rarely carried out in the world.

A National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accreditation lab has been established at the site to facilitate the testing work.

The construction of this project involved construction of 26 km of motorable roads, fabrication of nearly 28,660 metric tonnes steel and more than 80% fabrication has been done at site workshops in Kauri, Bakkal and Surandi.

At the peak of construction activity, nearly 3,200 people were working at this project site. A mini township consisting of about 600 rooms was established in the vicinity of the bridge to accommodate this massive workforce.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by yensoy »

Nice video of a China made Sri Lankan Railways DMU broken down and pushed by an Indian WDP-4 which was hauling another train. The unreliability of Chinese exports and the contrast with solid Indian engineering should be publicized.

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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Jits »

Vips
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vips »

A Rs 34,000 crore safety upgrade in the works for the Indian Railways.

The Indian Railways has drawn up a ₹34,000 crore safety upgrade of its network that involves deployment of an automatic train protection system - Kavach. This move is aimed at ensuring safer rail travel while minimising collisions and accidents.

Plans for the deployment of the system along 34,000 route kilometres have been included in the railway works programme of 2020-21 and 2021-22. It will now be expanded to the rest of the rail network. "Tenders for deployment of Kavach across the entire 68,446 RKM will be issued in two years. The project will be completed in the next five years," a senior rail ministry official told ET.

The cost of Project Kavach is ₹50 lakh per kilometre, a fourth compared with ₹2 crore that similar enhanced safety measures cost in other parts of the world, the official said

The lower cost will also help Indian vendors compete in the global market for deployment of these technologies. "There is demand for such a system from North America, South America, Malaysia and Taiwan among others," the official added. At ₹50 lakh per kilometre, the total outlay for the deployment is roughly Rs 34,000 crore.

Kavach was developed by the Research Design and Standards Organisation under the railway ministry, in collaboration with Medha Servo Drives Pvt Ltd, HBL Power HBL Power Systems Ltd and Kernex Microsystems. This project has been in the works for a while and conceptual field trials took place in October 2012.

"The first field trials on the passenger trains were started in February 2016 and based on the experience so gained, the initial version of Kavach specifications were finalised in May 2017," a rail ministry note said.

Kavach was approved for speeds up to 160 kilometres per hour and automatic block signalling in 2020-21, it said. The Indian Railways is pursuing development of more suppliers for this technology, the note said.

So far, Kavach has been deployed in 1,098 RKM and 65 locomotives in ongoing projects of the South Central Railway. It is also planned to be implemented on the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah corridors (covering around 3,000 RKM) as part of the 'Mission Raftar' project for increasing the speed of trains to 160 kilometres per hour.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by sivab »

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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by arshyam »

I don't understand - the GQ and diagonals were 100% electrified a decade ago. Only the Guwahati line wasn't, and is in progress now.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by morem »

Pawarful ppl had stopped it for a small stretch near Solapur
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by arshyam »

Oh, yes. I forgot about that, thanks for the reminder.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by chetak »

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