Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

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Rishi_Tri
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Rishi_Tri »

vsunder wrote:
Vaishali was a republic in ancient India, Janapradha. This moron Nitish should go.
Vaishali is the oldest know republic in the world, even by modern standards.

As to Nitish - From Sushasan Babu to Kushashan Kumar to Sushasan Babu to now Kushashan Kumar again.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

Mamata Banerjee, Nitish Kumar and the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor

The EDFC will never become a potent artery for movement of bulk goods till the DFC is constructed through the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. The route through these three states passes through forest land which involves obtaining necessary environmental clearances and also significant hurdles imposed by various state governments in power in those states have to be overcome. The section in question is the 538 km section from Sonnagar(Bihar) to Dankuni (West Bengal). Mamata Banerjee(MB) has had a very antagonistic relation with the DFC since her tenure as Rail mantri. First in 2010 she sent the DFC authorities back to the drawing board to make radical changes in the alignment so that farmland would not be utilized. Next in 2014 during the land acquisition stage, she demanded that market prices be paid to the WB government to hand over 36ha of land under WB government control to complete 203 km of the DFC that passes through Bengal. 310 ha of land is needed in Bengal. The UPA junior railway minister at that time Adhir Chowdhury who controlled one of the few Congress bastions in Bengal at that time had an antagonistic relation with MB and this and the fact that the DFC authority did not want to set a precedent as most states had handed over land in their possession at below market rates contributed to no action being taken on land acquisition in WB for the DFC. Policy and institutional paralysis in the UPA government contributed the rest.

To table the issue in the time honored Indian way of not doing anything and staring at their collective navels, the UPA authorities decided to construct the Dankuni Sonnagar section on a PPP model. No business enterprise will step into a sewer and deal with a situation where the governments of the day do not hand over clear right of way to lay tracks and set up related infrastructure and so too it happened with the Dankuni--Sonnagar section and there were no takers. In the rest of the DFC in both the western and eastern sectors, progress has been steady and good and the project in those sections is tentatively scheduled for completion in Dec 2021 which to this "analyst" seems optimistic. But surely one can see the light at the end of the tunnel for the WDFC and the Dadri---Sonnagar section of the EDFC by end 2022 for certain.

It is thus clear that Ms. Banerjee has now woken up to the potential dividends of this project and dashed off a letter to Mr. Piyush Goyal, the central railway minister, at the beginning of August (2019)complaining of "stepmotherly" treatment of the central government regarding the DFC. Her letter states that the West Bengal government has handed over 60% of the land to the DFC and has done 70% of the land acquisition. However, a business enterprise will not step in unless close to 90% of the land has been acquired. Thus the land acquired by the WB government is far short of the quantity needed to start a tender process for actual construction to begin and any such attempt is doomed to failure like the first attempt. Given Mamata Banerjee's negative association with the DFC, one could categorically state that her letter to Mr. Goyal is very disingenuous.

WB is not the only state that has been recalcitrant. Bihar and Jharkhand have also done their fair share to be impediments to the DFC project. We may start with WB. 270 crores out of the 580 crores has been disbursed by the WB govt for land acquisition. Out of the 898 crores needed for LA in Bihar, sadly the Nitish Kumar Govt. has not even distributed even half the amount. While Jharkhand has shelled out barely 70% of the 336 crore bill for LA for the DFC. Until those who lose land are compensated properly, they will not move out of their land and this will delay further connecting the mineral rich hinterland of Jharkhand, Bihar and steel plants in WB with the rest of India with an efficient, fast transportation network for the transport of bulk items in particular. The DFC will also aid in passenger movement. Passenger trains move slowly here as freight competes with them esp. along the Grand Chord with the large number of coal carrying rakes. EDFC has been designed for carrying of bulk items like coal, stones, minerals etc and so there was never any need to construct oversized OHE equipment unlike the Western DFC that sees double stacked container traffic towards JNPT and the Gujarat ports of Kandla, Mundhra etc. In fact the terminal of the EDFC being Dankuni seems a poor choice. It should have been logically Haldia port. But again if one has to put a finger on the problem, it would appear it is insurmountable LA problems in WB that made the planning authorities stop at Dankuni.

It is hoped that a change in government in West Bengal in the next election cycle and hard pushes by the central government to its partners in Bihar and Jharkhand will jolt the respective state governments to act decisively and integrate their state economies with the rest of India and cooperate in building the EDFC so that it realizes its fullest potential.





Now that you have read my rant, you can relax by listening to these three pieces:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JpXlliAn2I


Everything is here, harmonics, left hand pizzicato, scordatura, playing on the G string, playing on several strings together, Paganini throws the kitchen sink, a dazzling virtuoso performance by the young French violinist Olivier Pons:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBTtdApO3ds


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgx801AkrM8

Maybe if Thiagaraja and Paganini had met (they lived around the same time) they might have composed a Nottuswaram together a fantasy maybe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohrDlai ... YokGE-w1UA

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nottuswara
Last edited by vsunder on 20 Aug 2019 22:35, edited 1 time in total.
Supratik
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Supratik »

Mamata didi now wants the EDFC to reach Haldia and other ports in WB. She doesn't have much to show for in WB and elections are in 2021. Ofcourse could just be a pre-election tantrum.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Vips »

Pune Metro to have India’s 1st aluminium bodied rail coaches.

The upcoming metro network in the city of Pune will have India’s first aluminium bodied metro rail coaches, giving a huge leap for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make In India’ initiative. Being targeted for operations by the year 2021-2022, the Pune Metro Rail project has been undertaken by the Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (Maha Metro). Maha Metro is a special purpose vehicle (SPV) of Government of India and the Government of Maharashtra. The Pune Metro network intends to develop world-class metro stations. With the recent project update of having technology-advanced, state-of-the-art metro coaches, it has raised a level for all rapid transit systems across the country. Some of the prominent facts and features about the Pune Metro coaches are as follows:

Pune Metro aluminium-bodied coaches: Top features
Pune Metro coaches will be India’s first aluminium-bodied coaches with Indian multinational Titagarh Firema winning the international bid for the design, supply, manufacture, testing and commissioning of passenger rolling stock for the Pune Metro Rail Project. Titagarh Firema, based in Kolkata, West Bengal will be supplying as many as 102 aluminium-bodied, lightweight metro rail coaches for the Pune Metro network.

According to Lalit Tejwani, Vice President, Passenger Transport and Electricals, Titagarh Wagons Limited the order is valued at Rs 1,100 crore and the contract is for a total of 34 train sets, having three cars each, which will be supplied in a span of 160 weeks. “The metro coaches will be built on the basis of Italian technology which will be manufactured in India for the first time,” Tejwani told Financial Express Online.

Once operational, the Pune Metro network, will serve the areas of Pune Central and its extended city limits of Pimpri and Chinchwad. The Pune Metro rail project comprises two lines. The 16.5 km line 1 extends from PCMC to Swargate having 14 metro stations, while the 14.6 km line 2 extends from Vanaz to Ramwadi having 16 metro stations.

The aluminium-bodied Pune Metro rail coaches will be able to achieve a maximum speed of 95 kmph and will have the capacity to accommodate as many as over 925 passengers. The coaches will also be equipped with a regenerative braking system.

These metro coaches will be fully air-conditioned with features such as humidity control, and will be provided with digital routes as well as station display, with its interiors matching international standards.

The next-generation aluminium coaches are more energy efficient and have better technical aesthetics. The coaches will have an emergency or panic button in order to ensure the safety of passengers. The passengers will also be able to speak to the train operator on board and to the emergency control at operation control center (OCC), if required.

During initial operations, the trains in Pune Metro will consist of three coaches which will be subsequently converted into six coaches as per the traffic requirement at later stages.

The Pune Metro coaches will be equipped with mobile and laptop charging facilities for passengers on board. CCTV cameras will also be installed in the coaches and metro trains will be monitored through regular operations.

The metro coaches will be aerodynamically as well as ergonomically designed with the exteriors beautified with vibrant folk art reflecting the strong historical and cultural heritage of Pune, Pimpri and Chinchwad areas.

The Pune Metro coaches will also be capable of functioning in driverless mode, however, Pune Metro’s operations will be with the duty of train drivers or operators.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Rahul M »

From Mani Sir's blog.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/train-18 ... st-s-mani/
Train 18 series, part 19...Transparency and Delivery, the twain must meet!
Published on March 3, 2019
S. Mani


What exactly is transparency? Transparency, as I understand, for a government organization dealing with public funds, or perhaps even in a responsible business enterprise, is a culture of honesty and openness. But transparency sans accountability and delivery is meaningless; there is an equally important flip side and that is, the obligation to deliver. If use of public money must be done in a transparent manner, then it is also necessary that the purpose for which this money is being utilized is served well.
...
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Mollick.R »

Rahul M wrote:From Mani Sir's blog.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/train-18 ... st-s-mani/
Train 18 series, part 19...Transparency and Delivery, the twain must meet!
Published on March 3, 2019
S. Mani

What exactly is transparency? Transparency, as I understand, for a government organization dealing with public funds, or perhaps even in a responsible business enterprise, is a culture of honesty and openness. But transparency sans accountability and delivery is meaningless; there is an equally important flip side and that is, the obligation to deliver. If use of public money must be done in a transparent manner, then it is also necessary that the purpose for which this money is being utilized is served well.
Sir do do you or any senior BRF members here have some Chaiwala, Paanwala at ICF for some insider info ???

After the last vigilance issue popped up against Train-18, no further news. really sad to hear. i read there is proposal to make total 42 or 43 such train sets, but actual on ground seems to be quite messy. Perhaps too much of vested interest of desi and bdesi people causing all those. Is Train-18 going to be Arjun saga of IR ??

This kind of excessive focus of L1 giri tolerated only in India. One of the prime reason for success of Delhi metro and E. Sridharan was not going for this L1 BS and even after his retirement on several fronts DMRC still follow same principles
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by JayS »

For Train 20 or is it 21 now, which was supposed to be Aluminium body, ICF was going to look for TOT from outside India. Can it use this production technology used by this Company Titagarh Firema used for Pune Metro..? The article says Italian tech, are they having some kind of collaboration or licencing from some Italian company??
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

DFC corporation has moved to a new website. Current status updated to March 2019 is on the web site. In addition Land acquisition status has been updated to Dec 2018.

http://www.dfccil.com/Home/DynemicPages?MenuId=79

http://www.dfccil.com/

DFC has started issuing a journal bi-annually. The journal contains articles contributed by DFC engineers on many aspects. Surveying using drones, Electric traction on the WDFC, bridges, land acquisition etc. Three issues have been released. Here is the link to the latest issue 3, June 2019. The older issues 1&2 had a short write up on the project status. Current issue has no such write up except a few pictures.

http://dfccil.com/upload/DFC_Journal_Ju ... une_19.pdf

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

These videos show recent progress on the WDFC intermittently on the right of the train. Videographer is focused left of the train on IR doubling and electrification of the Delhi-Ahmedabad route(once in a while videographer shoots to the right of the train and one can see WDFC then)

Haripur---Sendra----Beawar (ghat section at Bar) between Marwar Jn and Ajmer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Musn1EwxLvc

Abu Rd. -------Marwar Jn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DNVxwTtFEU


Maval(Gujarat Rajasthan border)------Abu Rd -----Bhimana (Palanpur to Marwar Jn )

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7mShlHZmGU

Yesterday a trial eloco ran on the new double track IR between Maval and Palanpur (43km) and so commissioning of the electrified double line of IR tracks Palanpur----Maval is imminent. Maval to Abu Rd is 9km. DFC is running parallel to IR tracks and DFC is to be commissioned by March 2020 upto Palanpur. Tall order though. Tracks of DFC have been laid upto Biroliya from Rewari (between Abu rd and Marwar Jn.) that is 150km from Palanpur and tracks of the DFC have not been fully laid through the Ghat section at Bar ^^^
which is a 25km break between Ajmer and Marwar Jn. NTC machines can lay 300km a year and WDFC has just one NTC machine to do both up and down tracks. Earthworks and bridges are being built between Abu Rd. and Palanpur on the DFC. The RUBs and ROBs that are being built for the DFC will also help IR. DFC does not have a single level crossing on either EDFC or WDFC.

%%%%

Ahmedabad Mahesana doubling of IR, here the DFC is to the left and we can see it being constructed concurrently with IR doubling between Mahesana and Ahmedabad. IR doubling consists mainly of ripping up the old meter gauge track, re-doing and re-aligning earthworks and replacing older meter gauge bridge with stronger bridges for BG.
I am linking just part 4 of the video series relevant to the DFC.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLNnG5j2bkc

Just before Mahesana, the DFC will cross from the left to the right side of the IR tracks(rail flyover) ^^northwards towards Palanpur, Abu Rd, Marwar and Ajmer all the way to Dadri.



@Vasu Raya: I do not understand your question. The word Dedicated in Dedicated freight corridor should indicate that the lines and stations are separate from IR. Stations of DFC are not co-located with IR stations and are simply an administrative building with loop lines there and 40km apart. No passenger trains run on the DFC, so what platforms etc are you talking about????. More importantly DFC tracks never enter a major town and go around the town. Kanpur, Allahabad, Mughalsarai, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Surat, Delhi all of them. Only between towns they ran alongside IR tracks on their own alignment and never have intersections with IR tracks except at a few places, say for example between Kanpur and Delhi, IR and DFC tracks will have points from one to another at at most 3 DFC stations, not even IR stations. There may be just 8 DFC stations between Kanpur and Dadri.

Ro-Ro trains cannot run on the EDFC as the traction pole heights have to be compatible with the existing traction pole heights on parallel IR tracks which are 5.1 m high. Bulk goods are the chief freight movement on the EDFC, coal, minerals, stone etc. so Ro-Ro not crucial. Barge traffic on Inland waterway 1 will play a crucial role on this route between Haldia--Varanasi and beyond later.

On the WDFC the OHE poles are higher see videos above ^^^ and compatible with the IR OHE poles of 7.1m as double stacked containers to JNPT and Gujarat ports move along this line anyhow. So Ro-Ro is possible on WDFC. I am not sure what the situation is with electrification on Konkan railway and if the OHE poles have been raised to accommodate Ro-Ro traffic.

It is extremely important that DFC tracks are at least laid upto Palanpur quickly. The reason is a line branches out at Palanpur towards Gandhidham, Kandla and Mundhra ports. So right away DFC will come useful for container traffic. It will take a while to connect JNPT to the DFC. Hopefully by end of next year Mundhra/Kandla etc will be connected to Palanpur by electrified lines too(work is going on there Palanpur---Gandhidham on doubling and electrification of IR line) and once at Palanpur, freight can move on WDFC towards North India.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by chetak »

twitter


A beautiful aerial shot of the track over the Bhima viaduct on the Kasara-Igatpuri section, with the greenery and the Monsoon mist adding to the beauty!
Pic courtesy - Kunal Khairnar!


Image
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by A Nandy »

Track capacity expansion is not translating to timely movement of trains just yet. There are regular reports @RailwaySeva of trains moving 3 hrs late. Operations needs real attention.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

A Nandy wrote:Track capacity expansion is not translating to timely movement of trains just yet. There are regular reports @RailwaySeva of trains moving 3 hrs late. Operations needs real attention.
And why do you believe capacity expansion has happened? The major sections were operating at 160% capacity, and current improvements mainly patch doubling and patch tripling may lower to 100% say. It takes 10 years to lay 30km of track in India
sometimes, witness the Mumbai Chennai doubling going on for 25 years and still not done. At the end of the current fiscal about 80km of track will still be left for doubling, not even tripling. 80km single line traffic can screw up schedules between major metros. That is why I find all this talk of Train 18 hilarious, where will these trains run at speed? After all Train 18 runs on single line between Allahabad and Varanasi.
On the other main routes, tracks are doubled but at 160% capacity. Line tripling is going on but it is very slow and will take 5-10 years. Patch tripling is not helpful. For example between Chennai and Delhi, only 220km is triple lined while nothing has happened over the rest about 1900km and that is the same situation as in 1980 say doubled tracks. To do 1900km with dum lagake haisa and JCB machine and do earthworks and manually place track now tell me? Even NTC machine does 300km of track laying a year. So if you have one NTC machine how many years will it take and we do not have even that one.
And useless buggers on Internet are still demanding more trains.

Take Jhansi-Kanpur doubling 203 km another project that is now 10 years old and only 35 km done. Company that was doing 70km on it went phut, now a Chinese-Hyderabadi company has taken over and just started to do the 70km stretch where previous company went phut and did nothing no earthworks even. The other two 70km packages, who knows. All trains from North India like Gorakhpur, Kanpur, Lucknow towards Mumbai and Chennai, Trivandrum go on this route, dense single line crossings and a massive derailment at Pokrayan in 2015 when 151 people died due to no downtime and poor maintenance. Line set down in 1883 and the Yamuna bridge at Kalpi gives me hebeejeebies. New bridge coming up but progress is very very slow, they put up a span every 4 months, this will not do. Babaji ka thulla ke zamane se kaam chal raha hai.

For this massive infra push need 20 NTC machines, not the 3 that are working on the DFC. Using JCB and dum lagake haisa is not the way, in the 21st century.

When say all of Delhi-Chennai is tripled and all branch lines feeding into it are doubled, and automatic signalling and so on whole route then time will improve. Even on Delhi-Howrah route, the major yard at Tundla where line branches out to Agra, the entire yard is controlled by manual levers etc, this is a bad joke.
They say when DFC comes on line next year, they will use the downtime at Tundla to replace the entire system by a modern system and panels, so they say.

Here is a point to ponder, no railway zone in India ever meets its construction targets for any fiscal year by even 40%. Take the case of Central Railway arguably an important Railway zone. Out of 300 odd km last fiscal, they could only complete 48km of track re-gauging, new line , doubling total. Now this fiscal because of the spillover, 668km has to be done that is doubling+re-gauging+new line. Railway Board is setting targets, zones are doing tamasha and people are asking for new trains aur BRF is asking Train 18 Train 18, Train 3\pi^2 etc. Will Central railway do 668km when they fail dismally at smaller targets? Will inept people get sinecures?
I want to use some choice Kanpuriya language here. See all the target tamasha here. Every effing zone is screwed up.

https://www.railpost.in/new-line-doubli ... y-2019-20/

In other news Obulavaripalle(Kadapa district on Chennai-Mumbai line) has been connected to Venkatachalam(Delhi---Chennai line) ----Krishnapatnam port. The longest tunnel in South India at Rapur is on that route. For now only freight will run on this route and shorten time to Krishnapatnam port by 2 hours from places like Hospet, Mumbai. The first freight train that ran on this sector was steel from Jindal steel plant at Toranagallu(between Hospet and Ballari/Bellary) to Krishnapatnam port where it was loaded on to MV Dubgaya. Later this track will also connect with Sri Kalahasti(yes temple place) and Nandikudi new line. For Telugu speakers here you can listen to what the local people say about this commissioning:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFth6dmsmj8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3z3kx59xdLc

If you don't speak Telugu you can listen to this, the woman is Elisa the sister of Napoleon to whom Paganini dedicated these pieces(she was the Duchess of Lucca)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-yUTlwftCI

If some Telugu speaker summarizes what is being said in the videos for the non-cognoscenti that will be good. It is obvious though what they are saying.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by arshyam »

Not a very flattering impression of Piyush Goyal and the Modi govt if they couldn't build upon the success of T-18. If anything, the MoR appears to have succumbed to inter-departmental (IRSEE vs IRSME) turf-wars and scapegoated the T-18 and the team that built it. This, when the PM has stressed about the importance of this project multiple times. When they are ready to import NRI advisers at the drop of the hat (CEA, Niti Aayog, etc.), why not retain Sudhanshu Mani as a consultant to take the T-18 project forward? Other factories like MCF or RCF could be licensed by ICF to build more trainsets.

While I don't dispute vsunder-ji's point about the T-18 not improving speeds by themselves, they could certainly replace existing Shatabdi express rakes and free the coaches for use on other express trains. They bring other benefits such as lower operational costs compared to a full LHB or ICF rake by virtue of having regen braking, and not needing a diesel-powered end-on-generator running throughout the journey to power the rake's electricals. Given the electric loco shortage throughout the network (I have heard that due to rampant electrification and shortage of locos, more and more goods trains' locos are routinely getting pulled into passenger duties and end up making the goods trains even more delayed, with the attendant consequences to a slowing economy), a self-propelled train can make a difference to loco availability. The T-18 is also lighter on the tracks when compared to a WAP-7 hauled passenger train as its traction motors are fully suspended as opposed to the WAP-7's nose-suspended TMs. I'd in fact lobby for a non-A/C EMU version of this train to be built in large numbers, which could replace all the slow passenger trains that run throughout the network. Apart from the above advantages, better allocation of locomotives, faster pickup, reduced turnaround times due to cabs being present at each end, there are many such advantages in doubling down on this platform. The ICF did show a T-18 'lite' MEMU rake, but am not sure what happened to it.

Lastly, it's home-grown tech like the LCA, and needs to be built in spades for a domestic ecosystem to develop. Unlike RDSO's 'research', which sadly is limited to tinkering with existing products to come up with derived 'new' ones: WAP-7 being a re-geared WAG-9, WDM-3D being a derivative of the venerable Alco WDM-2, WDP-4B and D being derived from the EMD WDP-4 series, the persistence with 1950s Schlieren tech for ICF coaches till a decade ago and turning around to import the LHB design again, and the list goes on, whereas the ICF has pulled a rabbit out of its hat with a product that is genuinely innovative and cheaper to build compared to similar products offered by others, all of which are foreign. Do I have to talk about reliability as well? :)

For our industry's sake, I hope some vision is shown in resolving this in favour of the T-18 and ICF.

Train 18 architect seeks working environment 'free from fear' - The Hindu
The architect of Train 18 and Southern Railway’s Principal Chief Mechanical Engineer (PCME) Shubhranshu has called for a working environment that is “free from fear, suspicion and inter-departmental conflicts” to deliver Vande Bharat Express trains to the nation as desired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In a letter to Chairman of the Railway Board V.K. Yadav, the officer said while Mr. Modi in his Independence Day address urged the Indian Railways to roll out more Vande Bharat Express trains for the people, the third rake itself of the iconic train was nowhere in sight.

Mr. Shubhranshu’s letter comes at a time when the making of Vande Bharat Express has come to a grinding halt at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai due to a variety of reasons, including allegations of one firm being favoured in the award of tenders and deviation of specifications set by the Research Design and Standards Organisation. Last month the Ministry of Railways directed the ICF to cancel all ongoing tender processes for the making of the flagship Train18 model rakes.

Mr. Shubhranshu had led the team of engineers that manufactured the first Train 18 in a record time of 18 months at a cost of ₹97 crore. The self-propelled train, which was later flagged off by the Prime Minister as the Vande Bharat Express between New Delhi and Varanasi in February this year, was celebrated as the most successful product of the Make in India initiative and also a game changer in Indian Railways.
Rejects allegations

“I am duty-bound to bring facts to your notice as the ex-PCME of ICF, who actually manufactured the first rake as envisioned by Sudhanshu Mani, the then General Manager of ICF...there seems to be a suggestion that a particular Indian firm was unduly favoured in the tenders. This is far from the truth. The tender which the Indian firm got for the electricals for the first two rakes was awarded on the lowest tender basis,” he said.

Reiterating that no compromise was made on safety or quality of Train18, Mr. Shubhranshu said the Vande Bharat Express had been running uninterrupted for eight months, a and had been in commercial service for six months without a single failure or unsafe situation which was not only an unprecedented feat for a single rake in service but testimony to the robustness of specifications, safety and reliability aspects of the train.

“To make things worse, a Vigilance enquiry has been launched in this indisputably successful project that in no way ranks even a shade lower than the Chandrayaan or Brahmos. I am sure ISRO or DRDO have not launched vigilance enquiries in their proud achievements...we all know that it is not the outcome of the enquiry that kills the spirit of innovation, risk-taking and out-of-box thinking. It is the process of enquiry that does it in ample measure,” the letter said.

Mr. Shubhranshu was also the first officer to flag the issue of a cash crunch in Southern Railways. He wrote two letters to the Railway Board explaining in detail how acute paucity of funds was threatening the continuance of On Board Housekeeping Services and other basic amenity activities to passengers on 110 long distance trains in the zone.

Southern Railway General Manager Rahul Jain also agreed with his point and sent a SOS. But soon after allocating ₹50 crore in the last minute to keep the services soon, the Ministry of Railways transferred Mr. Shubhranshu to the Rail Wheel Plant in Bihar. However, he is yet to be relieved from his present posting, railway sources said on Thursday.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by pandyan »

Great post, Saar!
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by sumsumne »

Andhra Pradesh gets India's longest electrified rail tunnel. Key features

https://www.livemint.com/news/india/ind ... 69057.html
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by saip »

Anyone know what algorithm the Railways uses when allotting berths to those on waitlist? Few days ago I booked 2tier berth from Bangalore to Ongole. I was at wl 7. So I waited. It did not improve finally on 3rd the Tatkal opened and I saw I was at 5. I did not want to take a change. So I booked tatkal (+400) and cancelled the previous WL booking. When I traveled next day I found half the bogie empty when I boarded. Where I sat out 6 berths 3 were vacant till I reached Ongole. So the question is when do the allot berths to WL? Do they allot them only at the last hour when they prepare the charts? There were 47 in tatkal quota and obviously they do not allot from that quota, I think.

While booking Tatkal I had another problem. It came out with random 'security questions'. First was are you registered for eWallet? (WTF is that?) I said no and it did not accept it. Then it kept shooting questions like birth day, phone no (it is on the screen itself), email etc. It would not accept any of my answers like I would forget any of those answers. Could be system glitch though as when I logged out & logged in these Qs disappeared.

When I entered the bogie it looked old and I assuemed it is more than 5-10 years old. I had a window seat. I saw the window is openable window. What caught my is the manufacturing date on the glass it is Aug 2018. My assumption was the window was replaced recently when it was broken or something or the put an emergency window. The bogie did have a bio toilet. I went out to where the attendant sleeps (why do they put him in a non-ac part is I never understand). Anyway while waiting to use the loo what I saw shocked me. The manufacturing date of the bogie is Dec 2018. Nuts were falling out, doors do not close, garbage bins are dirty beyond belief, paint was chipping, no handle to flush the bio toilet. And so many other things that my first impression was the bogie was 5-10 years old. How can mfr be so bad, how can the maintenance be so terrible or did I get it wrong? Who is responsible for it?
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Sachin »

saip wrote: So the question is when do the allot berths to WL? Do they allot them only at the last hour when they prepare the charts? There were 47 in tatkal quota and obviously they do not allot from that quota, I think.
All confirmed passengers generally have their seat/berth allotted at the time of booking itself. Then there are the "sitting passengers", who are in the RAC quota. For them no seat/berth is allotted at the time of booking. After the RAC quota is also exceeded people who try booking tickets would be wait listed. And the ticket would show the WL indicator and a running number.

The final decision on RAC and WL passengers happen at the time of charting (i.e finalising reservation charts) which generally happens 4 hours before the journey. Now in long trains, charts are also prepared at intermediate locations. The RAC people get berths on first priority (based on cancellations from confirmed bookings) and a few WL passengers would move upto the RAC queue. They can claim sitting accomodation, that is all. WL passengers are NOT to board the train at all.
There were 47 in tatkal quota and obviously they do not allot from that quota, I think.
Tatkal quota is different. There is a waiting list of tatkal quota as well. And people in this waiting list can only move up, if there are cancellations of Tatkal tickets. This generally does not happen as Tatkal bookings are done at the last moment and people will make an attempt to travel. A person in tatkal waiting list cannot move to general waiting list or RAC.

Reservation system is quite complex in IR. There are multiple quotas/pools and the seat/berth allocation happens partially based on that. The rule of thumb is that if you really wish to get a berth of your choice book very well in advance. Waiting list itself is of various types;
WL - generally the main one
RLWL - Remote location wait list (for quota of seats/berths allocated for stations lying midway)
PQWL - Pooled Quota waiting list (for seats/berths allocated to group of stations lying midway)
TQWL - Tatkal Ticket waiting list

Based on which seat/berth is alloted to which quota, it may also be lying vacant for some time. The scenario you mentioned about people boarding from Ongole could be because of this. That seat/berth was reserved (a WL or RAC ticket holder cannot barge in and sit here), but it would be from a couple of stations away.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by nandakumar »

saip wrote:Anyone know what algorithm the Railways uses when allotting berths to those on waitlist? Few days ago I booked 2tier berth from Bangalore to Ongole. I was at wl 7. So I waited. It did not improve finally on 3rd the Tatkal opened and I saw I was at 5. I did not want to take a change. So I booked tatkal (+400) and cancelled the previous WL booking. When I traveled next day I found half the bogie empty when I boarded. Where I sat out 6 berths 3 were vacant till I reached Ongole. So the question is when do the allot berths to WL? Do they allot them only at the last hour when they prepare the charts? There were 47 in tatkal quota and obviously they do not allot from that quota, I think.

While booking Tatkal I had another problem. It came out with random 'security questions'. First was are you registered for eWallet? (WTF is that?) I said no and it did not accept it. Then it kept shooting questions like birth day, phone no (it is on the screen itself), email etc. It would not accept any of my answers like I would forget any of those answers. Could be system glitch though as when I logged out & logged in these Qs disappeared.

When I entered the bogie it looked old and I assuemed it is more than 5-10 years old. I had a window seat. I saw the window is openable window. What caught my is the manufacturing date on the glass it is Aug 2018. My assumption was the window was replaced recently when it was broken or something or the put an emergency window. The bogie did have a bio toilet. I went out to where the attendant sleeps (why do they put him in a non-ac part is I never understand). Anyway while waiting to use the loo what I saw shocked me. The manufacturing date of the bogie is Dec 2018. Nuts were falling out, doors do not close, garbage bins are dirty beyond belief, paint was chipping, no handle to flush the bio toilet. And so many other things that my first impression was the bogie was 5-10 years old. How can mfr be so bad, how can the maintenance be so terrible or did I get it wrong? Who is responsible for it?
Well there is something called 'emergency quota ' which is for people eligible for priority travel. I dont know the details of who is eligible and who is not. But it is there. And it is also a sizeable chunk of available seats/berths. The unutilised berths under the emergency quota gets released in the evening of the day before the day of the train's departure. Sometimes even a few hours before the departure. But by then many bonafide passengers not waiting to take a risk either reschedule their travel or make alternative arrangements.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Dumal »

saip wrote:Anyone know what algorithm the Railways uses when allotting berths to those on waitlist?
The updating of the Waitlist priority is (near) real-time as people make cancellations, and it goes on until a few hours before the train starts from the originating station. As you noted, the Tatkal quota is exclusive of the regular seats/berths. So if you had seen that the tatkal quota was not fully sold until the train started, that could explain the empty berths. Another possibility is that you were taking a long distance train and there may have been "remote location or Pooled Quota (RLWL/PQWL)" waiting lists in play that would constrain the release of cancelled tickets from/to only those categories.

Re. IRCTC security pop-ups, I have had it check the registered phone number just prior to payment screen but not seen asking for DOB, email address etc. That may be new though.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by A Nandy »

Thank you VSunder Sir and Arshyam for the detailed reply. Its incredible the amount of effort you take to get detailed information and identify the core issues and I(and many others) really look forward to your posts.

I wonder why a large number of machines cannot be bought or leased, to at least double or triple line the critical sections. Is it budget or bureaucracy.

I heard that there is a bypass being built at Itarsi which should help as that seems to be a major focal point for many trains:
https://www.railpost.in/new-bypass-at-i ... uth-route/

Maybe if similar bottlenecks could be upgraded on priority we might see visible results.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

A Nandy wrote:Thank you VSunder Sir and Arshyam for the detailed reply. Its incredible the amount of effort you take to get detailed information and identify the core issues and I(and many others) really look forward to your posts.

I wonder why a large number of machines cannot be bought or leased, to at least double or triple line the critical sections. Is it budget or bureaucracy.

I heard that there is a bypass being built at Itarsi which should help as that seems to be a major focal point for many trains:
https://www.railpost.in/new-bypass-at-i ... uth-route/

Maybe if similar bottlenecks could be upgraded on priority we might see visible results.
Yes a bypass has been sanctioned at Itarsi. The alignment is such that there will be a rail over rail flyover the Khandwa-Bhusawal-CSMT tracks.

https://www.railpost.in/new-bypass-at-i ... uth-route/

To de-congest Itarsi and prevent issues like what happened in 2015 with a fire at Itarsi RRI cabin: The re-gauging of the entire Narrow gauge Satpura tracks from Jabalpur to Gondia with electrification will also help. This project was sanctioned a while ago but serious work only started in 2015 and has now reached its terminal phase. Jabalpur to Nainpur is already gauge converted and electrified with electrified BG trains running as of 2018. Nainpur to Samnapur is reaching the end and this will also end the project of connecting Jabalpur with Gondia by BG electrified tracks. High viaducts have been provided for tigers and other wild life to cross tracks. Trains from Patna, Allahabad, Varanasi, Gorakhpur to South India will not have to go to Itarsi anymore. Moreover they will also avoid the super saturated Nagpur--Wardha section which is close to 200% with trains from North--South and East---West running on this section and CR dragging their rump for about 20 years not even triple the tracks leave alone quadrupling which has also been sanctioned. From Jabalpur trains will travel on electrified tracks to Nainpur---Samnapur---Gondia(on the Nagpur-Howrah section) and then take the already electrified single line, Gondia----Balharshah and then Kazipet----Vijayawada, a saving of 200+ km between North---South India. You can see the video linked below of the wild life crossing viaducts and the last section Nainpur---Lamta---Samnapur a distance of 70km where tracks have been laid for about 40km by last June and station works are going on. Earthworks and bridges are done. I expect heavy movement of ore and other mineral rakes as well as passenger movement once done. All the old narrow gauge branch lines off this, to Mandla Fort, to Seoni(Mowgli lives here you know with Bagheera)----- Chindwara(Kamal/Katal Nath's place) old NG tracks are ripped up and gauge conversion and electrification going on, in fact Mandla Fort---Nainpur is already done and operational I believe. This will release pressure on Itarsi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_Ua4F_F1LU

Outside Itarsi the famous bridge on the Tawa river over which runs the Mumbai--Howrah(via Allahabad) mail is being doubled and project is close to completion. 3 spans are left to place over the piers of the new bridge over River Tawa and earthworks to approach the bridge are done and track linking also done. Once Tawa bridge is constructed, entire Mumbai----Allahabad will be doubled. Only Katni--Satna electrification is not done and will be done by end of this fiscal. Once done, Mumbai---Itarsi---Jabalpur----Allahabad----Howrah will be FEDL. No idea of the 10km grade separator being constructed at Katni. Katni is a heavy haul freight zone and has both a diesel and electric shed and sees very heavy freight movement. Katni---Bilaspur is being tripled and so also Katni---Bina (on Delhi--Chennai and Delhi--Mumbai line) is being tripled. Katni---Allahabad is just double lined and so is Katni---Itarsi(except the short block section Sonthalai--Bagra Tawa over River Tawa)
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Avik »

^^^^^^^^
vsunder sir- Thank you for that detail rich explanation.

May I request you to also shed light on the status of the Indore/Mhow- Khandwa gauge conversion, and the Khandwa- Akola link status? Also, if you dont mind, could you kindly share your thoughts on the Indore-Mumbai rail link. This was supposed to be a project promoted by the Shipping ministry back when Gadkari had that ministry, but havent heard a lot lately

Regards
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by arshyam »

Avik wrote:^^^^^^^^
vsunder sir- Thank you for that detail rich explanation.

May I request you to also shed light on the status of the Indore/Mhow- Khandwa gauge conversion, and the Khandwa- Akola link status? Also, if you dont mind, could you kindly share your thoughts on the Indore-Mumbai rail link. This was supposed to be a project promoted by the Shipping ministry back when Gadkari had that ministry, but havent heard a lot lately

Regards
vsunder sir perhaps has better details, but let me share what I recall in the interim.

Khandwa-Mhow section - sufficient funds have been allocated for this year's work, but there were two issues blocking execution:
1. The proposed alignment passes through the catchment area of the Choral reservoir and I believe they want to change it now (WR seems to have screwed this up, and the GM was pretty unhappy about it, per reports on IRFCA).
2. Environment clearance was sought for one track, and the forest ministry suggested seeking clearance for a double line to avoid future issues (duh!), so that took some time. Not sure if this is completed.
3. Changing the alignment means re-doing all clearances, etc. So more delay.
4. KNW junction being the meeting point of 3 railway zones (CR, SCR and WR), and there was some back and forth on who'll convert the MG tracks within the station. I believe that got resolved in the last month or two.
5. They are (or recently have) closed a small section between Sanawad and Omkareshwar road for gauge conversion.

Net net, looks like another 5 years, taking WR's apparent lethargy into account.

Indore-Manmad line: land acquisition has started, apparently. Here's the alignment map:

Image
Source: India Rail Info

Completed incomplete sentence.
Last edited by arshyam on 09 Sep 2019 10:00, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

^^^
1. Yes WR screwed up and the line alignment between Mhow and Omkareshwar went through the Choral reservoir. After the re-gauging is done between Mhow and Khandwa(the old Holkar State Railway route), the entire section will be transferred from WR to CR. However, there is talk of leaving the Patalpani to Kalakund ghat section as a heritage track even after gauge conversion as this line attracts a lot of foreign railway buffs.

2. Khandwa(birth place of the singer Kishore Kumar, aka A. Ganguly) to Sanawad (55 km) is being gauge converted at a fast pace as NTPC paid a lot of money as they have a thermal power plant at Khargone( samadhi of Baji Rao Peshwa I of Mastani fame is here by the banks of the Narmada). Line is close for trials. But no OHE work yet, poles have been fixed at a few places. There will be a bypass connecting this line to the Itarsi-Khandwa line before Khandwa so that coal rakes can go directly to the power plant and bypass Khandwa. Bypass line will branch off at Mathela the first station after Khandwa towards Itarsi and join the Khandwa-Sanawad-Mhow track at Ajanti, see videos below. Videos are rare of the work in progress, but they are there for intermediate stations like Nimar Kheri etc which shows that work is close to completion between Khandwa and Sanawad.
I did not know the line has been pushed to the next station beyond Sanawad that is Omkareshwar Road that has the Narmada and is a jyothirlinga, as Arshyam indicates. Omkareshwar rd is across the Narmada and so I am not sure as the old Metre gauge bridge over Narmada has to be strong enough to carry heavier BG traffic.

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

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITS0qg_nldM


In any case Sanawad to Mhow is still 64 km and this will involve ghats, steep gradients and new alignments and forest clearances and the problem at Choral with the reservoir alluded to in Arshyam's post. It may take a long time to re-gauge this 64 km.

The famous Meenakshi express ran on this metre gauge route between Ajmer and Hyderabad and it is a shorter route between Bangalore and New Delhi when re-gauging is finished.


2. Now comes the other messy section, Khandwa to Akola. This as all know contains the famous Dhulghat spiral, literally a spiral "staircase" by which the train ascends and descends to the valley floor. All this was built in 1963. That is one issue as to how to remove the Dhulghat spiral on gauge conversion. The second more serious problem is the Melghat tiger preserve. Forest clearances and so on were obtained from various tribunals, and with MH Govt. on board. But now suddenly MH govt. has yanked the carpet underneath and is having second thoughts about the trains going through Melghat tiger preserve. However Akola to Akot is close to completion and that is about 75 km.
Akot to Khandwa with Dhulghat spiral and the Tiger reserve is about 130 km and this re-gauging may take some years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0xAsQhggpg

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cit ... 032474.cms



Close by to Akot is the Gawligarh hills and Gawligarh fort. It was taken by Wellington by escalade and brutal assault even though it was considered impregnable. His memoirs refer to it as Gawilghur. He had fought his famous action at Assaye with Madras regiment and was severely outnumbered 10:1 at Assaye, against a confederation of Bhonsle Raja and others whose troops were commanded by French and European mercenaries. The remnants of that army went to Gawligarh and shut themselves up in the fort which had ample water. Napoleon always ridiculed Wellington as that "sepoy general". In later life Wellington always said Assaye and Gawilgarh were the best battles he had fought at every level tactical etc and not Waterloo.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capture_of_Gawilghur


Regarding the new line between Indore and Manmad for which Arshyam has kindly provided a map, it passes through a lot of tribal areas with no good roads or rail and so people suffer from lack of connectivity and taking produce to the markets in big cities. It is indeed a chord also between Indore and Manmad and significantly reduces the distance between these two cities. The region has many streams and rivers and so it might be an engineering challenge and may take a while for completion.

The Dhulghat Spiral: between Akot and Khandwa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3P-d17gag3A
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Avik »

vsunder, arshyam sirs--thank you very much for your response. As always, your insights and nuggets are very illuminating

Seems to me that within the next 5 or so years, we will have sufficient North-South linkages; starting with the west coast and going east, we'll have Konkan Railway (patch doubled in some parts) + Electrified broad gauge Pune-Miraj-Hubli_Bengaluru + Renigunta-Gooty-Guntakal-Manmad (FEDL hopefully) + Secunderabad- Akola-Khandwa-Indore-Guna + Balaghat-Balharshah+ Nagpur-Balharshah + The Vizianagram- Titlagarh link (through Dandakaranya) the east coast mainline (Coromandel route). In addition, I think, we'll have, chord routes such as Indore-Manmad link + the new north-south interior Andhra/Telengana link (which would be a boon as an alternate during the east coast cyclone season) + Osmanabad-Kurduwadi-Miraj section

So, North-South connectivity would be robust, with sufficient options.

Now, for east-west connectivity though, primarily due to India's rhombus like shape, we really have just two trunk lines--Mumbai-Howrah via Nagpur and Mumbai-Itarsi-Allahabad.
I think its high time, we have a couple of shorter more southern east-west links. Perhaps, a rail link cutting across between Kazipet to Koraput, and connecting Wadi to Miraj would provide one such link. An additional link could be further south, with a small patch connecting Nandyal to Ongole, to provide an integrated east-west link in the southern peninsula
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

^^^ If Akola is re-connected with Indore and the re-gauging is done, there will be a saving of 400km about 8 hrs in time between Hyderabad/Bangalore and Delhi over current routes. There is a description of travel by the non-existent Meenakshi express from Ajmer to Hyderabad on the "choti line" by Bill Aitken who lives in Mussoorie:

https://www.amazon.com/Travels-lesser-l ... 8172230869

Aitken decided to travel around India only by Metre gauge in 1989, just before Project Unigauge.

Maybe the GoI could have a special train starting at Hyderabad, then the train would proceed on Kazipet-Balharshah, stop at Chandrapur and the Tadoba tiger preserve. Then the train reaches Wardha and then switches to the Mumbai track to Akola and then Akola--Akot---Amal Khurd, here the train stops for Melghat tiger preserve. Then Khandwa and Omkareshwar. Visit Jyotirlinga. People with deep pockets go to Maheshwar and stay at the heritage hotel run by Richard Holkar in the fort built by Ahilyabai overlooking the Narmada:

https://ahilyafort.com/

Next stop Patalpani and arrive Ratlam via Ujjain and then Sawai Madhopur and Ranthambore tiger preserve and then to Jaipur and the train safari ends. So one sees three tiger preserves, two Jyotirlingas and the dilapidated samadhi of Baji Rao I at Khargone can be given a facelift and made an attraction. It periodically gets submerged by the Narmada.

https://www.newsbharati.com/Encyc/2013/ ... erged.html
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

People ask here often: What do DFC stations look like, do they sell Laya Patti, Channa and garam chai at DFC stations along with Paganini serenading you and Bouillabaise served with watercress in the upstairs dining room followed by Gateau St. Honore and cigars and brandy later.
No No No. DFC stations are in the boonies and are NOT co-located with IR stations. Here is the drone shot of the first electric loco on the Bhadan-Khurja section of the EDFC (194 km). All your questions will be answered if you watch this video. To the extreme right of the video you can see the twin IR tracks Kanpur to Delhi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fh6mNmiNVBo

On September 10th, a 58 wagon rake of BOXN freight carrying coal traveled on the Bhadan-Khurja (part of Kanpur-Delhi) section 194 km basically starting freight movement on a fully functional part of the EDFC. In Nov in a few days, there will be a diesel trial between Bhadan-Kanpur and after 6 months when OHE and systems work will be complete, EDFC will be open on 343 km between Khurja and Kanpur. Two things are also happening between Kanpur and Delhi. Tundla yard where a line goes to Agra is getting re-modeled and new electronic RRI is getting installed replacing a manual system that was clogging Howrah-Delhi. Govindpuri yard which is the freight yard for Kanpur is getting re-modeled and so there will be less detention for Kanpur-Jhansi traffic and Kanpur-Delhi traffic. So the hope is by next June a lot of line capacity is available between Kanpur and Delhi. To the extent that NCR is thinking of introducing 8 new trains between Kanpur and Delhi, partially meeting a demand for 15 new trains. So the hope is punctuality at least between Kanpur and Delhi may improve somewhat after June 2020. Here is the video of the first coal rake on the EDFC between Bhadan and Khurja: September 10, 2019.

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

On the western DFC there are videos of of a stacking yard between Ancheli and Amalsad preparatory to running NTC machines furbished with rail and sleepers using gantry cranes in the stacking yard. Ancheli--Amalsad is between Surat and Billimora in Gujarat, on the Mumbai--Ahmedabad section. More striking is a still shot at Gothangam(Gujarat) a few miles north of Surat. Here one can see a closeup of the blanketing work and how much better it is than regular IR because DFC is being constructed to more exacting standards of 32 tonnes axle loads as opposed to 22 tonnes axle loads on IR currently. More layers of crushed stones are used to blanket the earth etc. At Gothangam there is a stacking yard too which will be used to run NTC machines North towards Ankleswar, Bharuch and Vadodara.
However only 1 NTC machine is working on the WDFC and so between Vadodara and JNPT no track laying can take place as the sole NTC machine is busy finishing the Ajmer-Palanpur section by March 2020. So what happens, do they get another NTC machine? EDFC has 2.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EEWKOMSUEAELLS8.png:large

^^^ On the right is the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Western Rlwy IR tracks. At Gothangam there will be a rail over rail flyover, DFC will jump over the tracks on the right, make a huge loop around Surat(recall DFC avoids getting into a city) jump over River Tapti east of Surat near Diamond Nagar, Surat has all that, swing back and again come next to IR tracks south of Surat towards Mumbai. Lot of work left though piling work of the bridge over Tapti can be seen in GE but those are outdated photos.

Commissioning Ajmer--Palanpur would mean 643 km of the WDFC would be commissioned and traffic to Gujarat ports Kandla etc would start to flow well, Palanpur--Samiakali--Gandhidham---Kandla. 305km of this 643 km is already trialled by diesel. OHE and systems work on the 643 km is still pending and ongoing with some sections completed. OHE is all high to facilitate double stacked container traffic to various ports in Gujarat and JNPT.

Truck manufacturers, Eicher, Leyland, Tata have started to examine their options as the DFC operationalizing date approaches. This might impinge on profit margins and the slowdowns in the auto and truck industry.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by arshyam »

For vsunder-ji:
DFCCIL
‏Verified account @dfccil_india

Drone footage of first trial run of Heavy Haul train on EDFC’s 194 km Bhadan- Khurja section on 14.09.2019. @PiyushGoyal @RailMinIndia
#DFCCIL #TransformingTransportation #EDFC #HeavyHaul #DedicatedFreightCorridor #IndianRailways


A python rake, in IR parlance. Two individual goods rakes have been attached to form a single long rake. One can see the 8-wheeler caboose and loco of the second rake in the middle of the python. I am surprised this long rake needed only 1 loco at the head, given that it was carrying cold rolled iron(?) sheets. Seems to be a WAG-9, hard to identify the middle loco, perhaps another WAG-9.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by durairaaj »

For the fans of Train 18 or Vande Bharat.
Sad News: Train 18 project is in coma. If the infighting persists, it will be buried for ever.
1) Railways to not manufacture any more Vande Bharat Express rakes this fiscal
From the above article: "said by Railway Board Chairman Vinod Yadav on Monday.

“The energy consumption of the train was much more than the world standards. We realized that when we do mass production, we cannot have such high energy consumption. So we decided to review the specifications….that they become energy efficient. We will not be able to make any more Vande Bharat Express in 2019-20, but will produce 15 between 2020 and 2021, and 25 in 2021-2022," he said."

2) mission-successful-end-product-defunct
The second article published later alludes to a silent burial for the project.

3) Make-India-Vande-Bharat-Foreign-Players-Due-Inter-departmental-Rivalry
It seems the railway minister is not actively taking matters in his hands.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by nash »

^^^
How come it is buried if we are producing 40 of them by 2022 and these will be more power efficient. 40 is enough to replace all the shatabdis
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by vsunder »

arshyam wrote:For vsunder-ji:
DFCCIL
‏Verified account @dfccil_india

Drone footage of first trial run of Heavy Haul train on EDFC’s 194 km Bhadan- Khurja section on 14.09.2019.

A python rake, in IR parlance. Two individual goods rakes have been attached to form a single long rake. One can see the 8-wheeler caboose and loco of the second rake in the middle of the python. I am surprised this long rake needed only 1 loco at the head, given that it was carrying cold rolled iron(?) sheets. Seems to be a WAG-9, hard to identify the middle loco, perhaps another WAG-9.
Thanks. Yard remodeling and ugrading of manually set signals to automatic signaling has started in Tundla yard. Many trains have been canceled or short terminated during the process of upgradation. This work will be over by early November. Govindpuri/Kanpur freight yard re-modeling and upgrade will be over by late February. Hopefully this will signal better punctuality on the Delhi-Kanpur route.
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by IndraD »

Setback at high speed? India's ambitious Train 20 project reaches point of no return

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/in ... s?from=mdr
Supratik
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Supratik »

How Indian railways is trying to get rid of plastic use.

https://youtu.be/BE5kQMfPebM
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Supratik »

IR moving on private trains. However, importing rolling stock will be a disaster for make in India.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/in ... s?from=mdr
Peregrine
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Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Peregrine »

A Nandy
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by A Nandy »

https://indianexpress.com/article/india ... s-6006788/
Railways will be able to run passenger trains “on demand” and free of “waiting” list on the busiest Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah routes in the next four years with the construction of dedicated freight corridors by 2021, Railway Board Chairman V K Yadav said on Tuesday.

He said construction of the dedicated freight corridor on these two routes by 2021, will enable cargo traffic to move from the existing lines, allowing more passenger trains to run on them.

“When the DFC (dedicated freight corridor) on these two routes are completed, the existing Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah route will be completely free of freight. Then we will be able to run passenger trains on demand. The work to upgrade (train speed on) the route to 160 kmph has already been sanctioned and will be done in the next four years.

He also said work on the North South (Delhi-Chennai), East-West (Mumbai-Howrah) and Kharagpur-Vijaywada dedicated freight corridors was underway and the final location survey will be completed in the next one year. “These DFC’s will be around 6,000-km long and will be commissioned in the next 10 years. When this is done we will have a lot of capacity and we will be able to run a lot of trains.

“So, by the time we have enough capacity we should be able to introduce private operators and corporatise production units, so that technologically advanced coaches fit to run trains at 160 kmph are available in the country and we are able to export them as well,” Yadav said.
chetak
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by chetak »

twitter


The #IndianRailways, which does not exactly hold the reputation for being a #profit-making entity has managed to swell its coffers by Rs 35,000 crore, which is more than the annual budget of three northeastern states put together.

Photo: IANS

Image 9:09 PM - 9 Oct 2019
Rahul M
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Rahul M »

looks like a train b/w uzb & afg. what's the relation with IR ?
Paul
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by Paul »

Sunder sir, your posts are a sight for sore eyes.
hanumadu
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Re: Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

Post by hanumadu »

chetak wrote:twitter


The #IndianRailways, which does not exactly hold the reputation for being a #profit-making entity has managed to swell its coffers by Rs 35,000 crore, which is more than the annual budget of three northeastern states put together.
Misleading statement. Its the money IR got by selling scrap over 10 years. Its not profit and definitely not profit in a single year.
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