Indian Railways Thread (Dec 2015)

[sanjayc]

There is a reason why large illegal settlements of Muslims are found alongside railway tracks and highways. Will be activated during war. (The same reason why hill states like Uttarakhand are being settled by Muslim migration -- army will find it impossible to reach the border through narrow hill roads once thousands of Yahoos sit on them).

[S_Madhukar]

One can easily find YT videos on military trains where tanks and equipment is being moved around. Must check settlements on these routes too. While some of these are ordinary enthusiasts these are useful for the BIF

[rrao]

There is a reason why large illegal settlements of Muslims are found alongside railway tracks and highways. Will be activated during war. (The same reason why hill states like Uttarakhand are being settled by Muslim migration -- army will find it impossible to reach the border through narrow hill roads once thousands of Yahoos sit on them).

Besides the railway track near Delhi , hundreds of illegal hutments have come out and mostly occupied by BDs and locals. Children will be playing on the tracks unmindful of the incoming train. loco pilots are harassed so much, that they slow down the trains near these areas. The trains are pelted with stones. nobody got vacated them, as they are under protection by local leaders.

[Sachin]

In this case an Army special train was the target o derailment using detonators no less

Minor nitpick . "Detonators" used in IR are not dangerous. They are small explosives meant to be placed on tracks to warn an oncoming train. As soon as the loco goes over it, it blasts with a loud noise. And that is a warning message to the driver too slow down and watch out for obstacles. In fact, engine drivers & guards of every train has to carry a few of these in their "duty box". So if this was used (as a tool for sabotage), it may be prudent to have a word with IR staff itself. They would be the folks who have easy access to such detonators.

[chetak]

There is a reason why large illegal settlements of Muslims are found alongside railway tracks and highways. Will be activated during war. (The same reason why hill states like Uttarakhand are being settled by Muslim migration -- army will find it impossible to reach the border through narrow hill roads once thousands of Yahoos sit on them).

sanjayc ji,


these are choke points.

Same reason they now control and dominate small and obscure hotels with 10-15 rooms, autos and taxis, interstate busses and trucks, cell phone shops that gives them a steady access to aadhaar cards, pan cards, addresses and easy access to any amount of sim cards, dhabas and restaurants on all state and national highways, including thousands upon thousands of madrasas able to shelter, protect, and feed jihadi human traffic and such facilities are available across the country ....


These were facilitated and encouraged by the congis, and have by now, already reached a self sustaining mass, while providing employment and such entities are operating in a self propagating mode

That keeps them with their jihadi fingers on the pulse, to mobilize at very short notice and they have deviously tapped into the very heart of the social, economic, and security ecosystems

[vsunder]

Somehow I was under the impression that the freighter stopped before hitting the cement blocks on the WDFC. Not true ^^^ did hit it, but fortunately there was no derailment. Here is the pole across the tracks in Uttarakhand I mentioned above:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ind ... 494110.cms

[vsunder]

Progress Report on the Bhanupali---Bilaspur--Beri--Leh Strategic Railway Line


Not much has been heard in the news about the Bilaspur--Bhanupali--Beri railway line and onwards to Leh itself a challenging project with the line climbing to 17,500 feet over the Greater Himalayas. The line will reach 17,500 feet at Tanglangla Pass. Two things have happened. First, the DPR has been submitted for the line to Leh, though the government has yet to take a call to build it to Leh. The total length of the line is about 500km.


Second, the start of the line, Phase 0, in Punjab partly and the rest in Himachal Pradesh, Bhanupali---Bilaspur--Beri has seen progress with a breakthrough on tunnel 14 a few days ago. 16 tunnels are to be constructed on this part. 13/16 are done, Tunnel Number 14 is the longest at 2.2km in Phase 0. Phase 0 is 63km. Phase 1 of this line to Mandi is also apparently under construction. Beyond Mandi, the line passes through Manali and then onward to Leh.


Leh to Pathankot line has been scrapped after traffic surveys.


https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cit ... 612669.cms


https://www.psuconnect.in/news/rvnl-ach ... ject/44238


PS: Another derailment today of freight from Bokaro carrying steel products:

https://www.lokmattimes.com/national/jh ... ideo-a505/

[Rakesh]

Vande Bharat on the shopping list of several foreign buyers, railways focus on speed and security
https://aninews.in/news/national/genera ... 927214035/
27 Sept 2024

[saip]

Progress Report on the Bhanupali---Bilaspur--Beri--Leh Strategic Railway Line

Not much has been heard in the news about the Bilaspur--Bhanupali--Beri railway line and onwards to Leh itself a challenging project with the line climbing to 17,500 feet over the Greater Himalayas. The line will reach 17,500 feet at Tanglangla Pass. Two things have happened. First, the DPR has been submitted for the line to Leh, though the government has yet to take a call to build it to Leh. The total length of the line is about 500km.

17,500 feet? That is pretty serious elevation. If it is a passenger train it would probably need sealed pressurized compartments with emergency oxygen supplies. Generally civilian airlines travel at 8000' (that is they are pressurized to that level even though they may fly at over 35k) except the newer ones which are pressurized to 6000'. AFAIK only China operates trains at those altitudes. Their train to Lhasa reaches 18700' at its highest point.

[Suraj]

Airplanes travel at over 30000' . 8-9000 would be the figure in meters. But yes an elevation of 5000m+ is serious altitude sickness potential .

[saip]

When we went to Machu Pichu (8500') we stayed in Cusco (11100') for couple of nights to acclimatize. My wife had problems even walking for short distances there. Suraj, what I meant was airliner cabins are pressurized to 8000'. The newer ones (Dreamliner etc) are pressurized to 6000'.

[JTull]

Here's a 2018 report on the same line with a NR official talking about pressurised coaches.

Railways plans aircraft-like pressurised coaches for world's highest railway track in Leh

[vsunder]

Yes it was already known that the coaches will be pressurized. Till before the pandemic my family took hikes in the Himalayas of about 80km almost 80% of it above 11,000 feet. Even going up to Camp 2, at many of the Gangotri group of peaks. Valley of flowers is for example a 23 km hike to Ghangharia from Govindghat on the Joshimath to Badrinath road. The valley of flowers is then a further 5 km that is a very steep climb to 12,000 feet beyond Ghangharia. Hemkund is 14,000 feet and 7 km beyond Ghangharia involving a steep hike and crossing a glacier. Hemkund is holy to Sikhs and there is a gurudwara here by the side of a lake. Beyond lies the remote and beautiful Mana pass and Satopant glacier and Swargarohini peak from where Yudhistira left for heaven. Seen all of this with family.

Here the engineering challenge is not pressurized coaches, but building a line through terrain classified as seismic zone 4 and the highest seismic zone 5, which will trigger massive avalanches and tunnel cave ins. The Himalayas are also young and mainly sedimentary rocks that pose tremendous challenges even in the absence of earthquakes during the construction phase as tunnel stabilization becomes paramount. Recall the recent cave in near Yamunotri when an Australian had to be brought in to rescue the trapped tunnel workers. That was in the lower Himalayas. I know that area too well near Barkot. The line to Leh will be 10 times worse.

[Amber G.]

Thanks all for these informative posts!

High-altitude railway trains operate in extremely challenging conditions, facing harsh weather, steep gradients, and unique engineering requirements... Wow! The new Vande Bharat train.. planned to operate at an astonishing altitude of 17,000 feet or above, making it one of the highest railway lines in the world.

For perspective , checked some well known Highest Railways in the world:

Qingzang Railway in China, reaching 16,640 feet above sea levelc
Rio Mulatos-Potosí Line in Bolivia, with an elevation of 15,702 feet ²
Ferrovías Central in Peru, reaching 15,692 feet
Pikes Peak Cog Railway in the US, with an elevation of 14,114 feet ..
Gornergrat Railway in Switzerland, reaching 10,135 feet ..

This project will be an incredible feat of engineering.
Thanks again.

[vsunder]

Another derailment attempt last night. A whole load of soil dumped on the tracks at Rae Bareli. Loco pilot of train 05251 saw it and stopped the train and averted an accident. Encroachment along tracks has been addressed by Yogi at Kanpur by demolishment of structures.

[vsunder]

Another derailment on SR, Mysore-Darbangha express. Passenger train got permission to go on the mainline. Instead it got diverted to the loop line at 75kmph and rammed a stationary freight. Happened at Kavaraipettai. RaGa and other opposition leaders are making noise. Kavaraipettai is 40km north of Chennai on the Grand Trunk route, Chennai to Delhi.


https://www.suryaa.com/156782-southern- ... e_vignette

[Supratik]

It is necessary for the railways to demolish the slums and ghettos all along encroached land near railway tracks.

[Zynda]

The recent derailment near Chennai has been now confirmed as sabotage. Apparently, the nuts & bolts were removed on the main line which led the train to veer off into the loop line and collide with the stationary goods train. GoI must issue a statement saying that any body calling for sabotage of critical infrastructure which could lead to loss of lives will be treated as an accomplice & will be charged accordingly. Go after a few people & make sure they get convicted (our courts thinking like "every sinner has a future" is a different subject). Make example of a few people. Free speech isn't without consequences.

[Atmavik]

Vande cargo is in the works. hope it is not some mc kinzie ppt project.

looks to address the temperature control market and will run on DFC. i think this will be very important if it works

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPweLnmLFcQ&t=300s

[ernest]

Vande cargo is in the works. hope it is not some mc kinzie ppt project.

looks to address the temperature control market and will run on DFC. i think this will be very important if it works

much needed component that was missing in our logistics network.

Hope there are versions with wider side loading openings, larger than that was visible in the video. I wonder if we are are working towards more automated loading for goods. The pics from covid special trains show how manpower dependent we are, with humans loading through the narrow entrance. Frankly, it looks like we were not even trying. The new designs should keep in mind the logistics hubs being planned under Gati Shakti, and be easily modifiable for expanded automation in the future.

I would love to see robotic forklifts loading and unloading from Vande Cargo at one of the new gen logistics depots.

[SSridhar]

The recent derailment near Chennai has been now confirmed as sabotage. . . . Make example of a few people.

This is mass murder and/or attempted mass murder. In many countries murder has mandatory death sentence. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita must have such a provision for sabotages of this nature.

[sanjayc]

The main problem in India is excessively lenient laws. On top of that, judges have developed this fetish of "Bail is the rule, jail is an exception." The result is that law has ceased to be a deterrent for anyone.

[rajkumar]

Western Dedicated Freight Corridor Maharashtra Update | Panvel Bhiwandi |



Painfully slow progress

[drnayar]

one thinks the tool kit gang and con gress pappu and co are in full flow , targeting train tracks and bomb threats to airlines.. there is a plot going on for sure

[Atmavik]

https://www.business-standard.com/econo ... 701_1.html

Freight corridors driving equitable economic growth across India: Study

[VinodTK]

India approves $1.05bn rail network expansion to boost connectivity

The Indian government has announced a 375km rail network expansion, aimed at enhancing economic growth and connectivity in North Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh.
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[rajkumar]

Very good route capacity augmentation



3 rail projects to reduce congestion on the busiest sections between Mumbai and Prayagraj

[Suraj]

Great video on Chinese high speed rail and its dependency on critical foreign technologies:

Indian industrialization will be compelled to follow the same approaches China has taken - borrow, steal, or otherwise get hold of technologies that no one will share.

[Supratik]

Observations on Vande Bharat Express. I first travelled on VB 3 yrs back NJP to Howrah. It looked like Hema Malini in her 20s. I recently travelled on VB Chandigarh to Delhi. VB now looks like Hema Malini in her 70s. Both were blue-white color. Clearly while it is a good first effort it is not upto world standards yet. It will require 1 or 2 more iterations or entirely new design to be on par with European trains. I don't think IR will be able to do it although the govt is pushing for it. They just do not have the experience and expertise to do it. IMO collaboration with companies like Alstom is required. The RRTS trains by contrast are world class. Specific problems are modular panels used do not blend and are coming off at different places. The train looks tired may be due to material used. Dust problem in India is also taking a toll which is partly mitigated by moving to black-orange color.
Train does not have problem in locomotion but in look and feel.