Indian Railways Thread

[Nayak]

France offers to help India modernise railways including fast trains

MUMBAI (AFP) — France will sign an agreement with India to help modernise its massive railway system with a focus on safety, training and technology including fast trains, the French transport minister said Tuesday.

"Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français - the French National Railway Company - and the Indian Railways will co-operate through companies to modernise the railways in India," Dominique Bussereau, French state transport minister said.

"Our focus will be to increase safety measures, prevent fires, introduction of high-speed trains and personnel training," the minister told reporters.

France currently holds the record for the world's fastest commercial passenger train service at 320 kilometres (200 miles) per hour, he said.

The agreements will be signed in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Bussereau arrived in India Monday, on a three day visit to boost partnership in railways, aviation and freight transport systems between the two countries.

French and Indian Railways will tackle issues like overcrowding, railway track repairs, signalling, information technology and training, officials from both services added.

The state-run Indian railways, started by India's former British colonial rulers, has around 1.6 million employees -- making it the world's biggest civilian employer -- and runs thousands of trains daily.

But the 150-year-old railway, which transports more than 15 million people daily in the country of 1.1 billion people, has been notorious for deadly accidents, antiquated equipment, financial losses, delays and red tape.

The Indian Railways have posted a record 6.3-billion-dollar surplus for the financial year 2007-08, Railways minister Lalu Prasad Yadav said in February this year.

The French transport minister and his team leaves for capital New Delhi later Tuesday to meet civil aviation minister Praful Patel to discuss issues like building airport infrastructure, control tower systems and pilot training.

[Nayak]

China's subway trains first export to India

CSR Nanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock Works successfully signed a underground trains order, covering 108 cars or 18 chains, in Bombay, India on May 9,with the total value of more than 100 million U.S. dollars.
It is the first time that China's enterprises acquired the contracts to export the underground trains to India, and it is also China's largest underground trains export order ever signed.

The signing of the contract will mark the "zero breakthrough" for China's rail transportation equipments export to India, and it is also the first time for the CSR to exprort the whole underground trains abroad.

By People's Daily Online

[ranganathan]

The metro is going to have an excellent safety record.

[Vipul]

So after having waited a long time for the Metro, Mumbai now gets Junk to commute on.

[Kakkaji]

Cross-posting from the J&K Thread:

From dailypioneer.com. Posting in full as the URL isn't archived:

Queen of paradise to wow Valley

If you thought this one is from and for Switzerland, look again. The newage train with state-of-the-art interiors and "centrally heated" coaches is all set to crisscross the Jammu and Kashmir Valley from next month.
Thanks to the Indian Railways' concept and design team, this slick looking train will start chugging along the hilly and picturesque 119 km Qazigund and Baramulla sections.

With an aesthetic appearance and keeping in mind the cool climes of the region, the passenger area would have a heating arrangement through a roof mounted unit and smart technology would see to it that the coaches get heated automatically with increasing altitude and decreasing temperatures.

Double door vertical windows (of splinter proof polycarbonate sheet) would ensure there are no interruptions in the panoramic view outside. These come with sliding doors and are yet to be introduced even in the Rajdhanis and Shatabdis.

"With a seating capacity of 90, there is only the executive chair car type of seating arrangement with fire resistant grade upholstery and a reclining mechanism. A distinctive and attractive colour scheme has been adopted for these DEMU coaches," said Rajiv Saxena, chief PRO, Northern Railway.

Taking a cue from Delhi Metro, a public information system with a display and automatic announcement feature has been adopted. Other features which make this train distinct include antiskid flooring and pneumatic suspension in bogies, for better riding comfort of passengers.

"A snow cutting cattle guard (developed by ICF) is provided at the driving end for clearing snow from the tracks during winters. With a maximum of 1400 horse power, the diesel engine has a heating system for quick and trouble free start ups.

"A sleek aerodynamic profile with Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP) nose cone of drivers cab gives an aesthetic appearance to the train. The driver's cab is provided with a cab heating and defogging unit to take care of ambient cold climatic condition of the Valley. Besides this, it is provided with single lookout glass to give a wider view to the driver," a Northern Railway officer involved in the Rs 5000-crore project, said.

The train is scheduled to start chugging by June 2008.

[SSridhar]

Satellite TV on trains
[quote]The first phase of the trial run is expected within two weeks, Mr Juneja told Business Line. Once the test run is completed successfully, the service will be formally launched initially on luxury tourist trains. “We are hopeful of launching the service in tourist trains such as the Palace on Wheels in the next three-to-six months,â€

[Vipul]

Railways lays auction track to sell tickets.

Indian Railways adopts auction routes to sell tickets for the upwardly mobile who prefer travelling in AC-I and AC-II classes. The same facility would be available for freight services. Biggies like TCS, Wipro, HP, Infosys, Satyam and Accenture have been shortlisted to kick off the integration of commercial portal. The winner of the bid would be announced in a fortnight.

“While passengers may avail this service only on lean routes, traders may enjoy discounts by bidding for wagons on cargo trains running empty on one side,â€

[Rahul M]

One thing I've noted in the kolkata local train network recently :

due to the installation of the sat based collision avoidance system (I think)
more than one train are running on the same track in the same direction at considerable speed w/o much time lag between them.

Pretty neat thing during the rush hours !!

[MN Kumar]

Hi-tech touch for cleaning railway tracks
[quote]As Railway Minister Lalu Prasad’s railway budget addresses popular concerns and also envisages increased efficiency and cleanliness without making passengers cough up more money, a robot designed by a lecturer at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) in Jalandhar for cleaning the surface beneath the railway tracks can help in giving the platforms a cleaner look, of course, in a high-tech manner

The robot fitted with a high pressure water jet can be programmed according to the departure and arrival of the trains. Apart from increasing the efficiency in cleaning, it can also prove to be a big leap in withdrawing the manual involvement in removing the filth in the railway tracks.

With successful completion of the project, for which Union HRD ministry had given a grant of Rs 30 lakh, its creator Kuldeep Singh Nagla has also been nominated by the government of India for Commonwealth Scholarship for pursuing his PhD in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence in UK.

"I have studied the cleaning of garbage and the design provided for it at the railway tracks along the platforms. While working over the robot’s efficiency, its programming for synchronisation with the train traffic was also a major thrust," Nagla said. "This robot will be an on-line and off-line programmable system combined with various indicators and sirens,â€

[rajkumar]

Kashmir Trains

http://www.hindustantimes.com/PhotoGall ... India42008

BTW nice looking train. Not your usual IR Engine & Coach

[satyarthi]

Train to Kashmir

Videos:
http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/67536/06_ ... aking.html
http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/67536/06_ ... aking.html
http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/67536/06_ ... aking.html
http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/67536/06_ ... aking.html

[sanjaychoudhry]

Manali-Leh railway link soon

In a major move to push tourism in the hill states and counter Chinese expansion in the Tibetan region, the Railways ministry has prepared a blueprint to set up an ambitious 480 kilometre Manali - Leh railway line link criss-crossing the treacherous mountains in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.

The project according to experts will cost over Rs 16,000 crore and the ministry is already preparing a detail survey plan for the project.

A top level government meeting took place in Delhi recently to discuss the survey and other modalities of the project. The distance, according to the plan, will be traversed in around ten hours.

A senior Railway Ministry official said, "A detailed survey plan for the proposed Manali-Leh railway line has been prepared and is under the active consideration of the Railway Board. The expenditure for the survey will be shared jointly by the Himachal Pradesh government and the centre."

The plan is to lay a broad gauge railway track between Jogindernagar and Manali via Mandi and extend it 480 kilometre further to Leh via the Rohtang pass and beyond.

The security concerns are a key reason for building the train line.

"With China building the Beijing-Lhasa railway track, it is critical for India to respond and build the Manali-Leh route both from the security and tourism point of view of India," said Prem Kumar Dhumal, chief minister, Himachal Pradesh.

The proposed railway project is strategically important for India as experts opine that a railway line will be a viable transport alternative in extreme weather conditions.

At present, the main source of connectivity to the border areas is either through the road or air, which frequently gets affected during adverse weather conditions.

Manali - Leh highway which connects tribal areas of Lahaul, Udaipur, Pangi and Ladakh with the rest of the country and goes through the highest mountain passes in the world, remains closed down during the entire winter season.

A rail link will definitely serve India's defence purpose at a time the Chinese are flexing their muscles at our backyard, said an industry expert.

Apart from serving the India's defence interest, the proposed project will provide a fillip to the tourism industry that is one of the major source of revenue generation for the state of Himachal Pradesh.

"I have just returned from Leh and the response I received from the people of Ladakh has been tremendous. The private sector is already showing a keen interest in building this railway track," Dhumal said.

A senior executive of an infrastructure company undertaking railway projects said that the cost of laying a railway track at such a high altitude will be more than double the cost of laying a normal railway track.

Because of the difficult terrain, the movement of vehicles carrying raw materials and other equipment for the project will become costlier.

Moreover, a large amount of tunneling work will have to be undertaken along the proposed route.

http://www.business-standard.com/common ... =0&chkFlg=

[sanjaychoudhry]

On track in Kashmir

http://www.newindpress.com/sunday/sunda ... ry&rLink=0

[SSridhar]

Madrassah degree valid enough for a Railway job - Lalu

"Now students of madrassas, like any educational institution, will be able apply for jobs in the railways," Lalu Prasad told IANS by phone.

The move is seen as part of Lalu Prasad's political strategy ahead of the parliamentary elections to woo Muslim voters.

Last year acting on the Rajinder Sachar Committee recommendations, the government issued directives to all ministries to improve participation of minorities in government jobs.

Till February 2008, of the 67 departments and ministries under the central government, the railways had nearly three percent Muslim employees, which is well below the average five percent mark.

[Avinash R]

Metro Rail to cost Rs 3,084 cr: Minister

Thiruvananthapuram | Monday, Jul 7 2008 IST

Kerala Sports and Youth Affairs Minister M Vijayakumar today told State Assembly the total cost of the proposed Metro Rail at Kochi was expected to be Rs 3,084 crore.

In a written reply to Mr Joseph M Puthuseerry of Kerala Congress (M) and others, he said the State and the Centre would each invest 15 per cent of the total cost and the remaining would be raised as loan from the Japan Bank of International Corporation (JBIC) Stating the total length of the Metro Rail would be 25.253 km, which would be constructed between Aluva and Thripunithura, he said the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation would be the implementing authority.

Work would start immediately after the government received the approval from the Planning Commission and the Centre. The Minister also said the government had urged the Centre for a High-Speed Corridor connecting IT and Port cities in South India and the request was under the consideration of the Union Government.
Link

[anupmisra]

Kashmir Trains

http://www.hindustantimes.com/PhotoGall ... India42008

BTW nice looking train. Not your usual IR Engine & Coach

Are you serious? It looks shoddy. Please dont be fooled by the slanted aero-dynamic front. Look at the details and the lousy paint job.

[anupmisra]

The metro is going to have an excellent safety record.

I hope IR takes a leaf out of the Porki experience when they imported Chinese junk and built their lines and stations based on chinese specs. That deal saw several heads roll (in porkistan).

I dont have a password to the FridayTimes (so no link) but this was an article several years ago:

Germans called in to fix Chinese problem

M R Klasra
http://www.thefridaytimes.com/page2a.shtml

The railways ministry first lost money on buying defective locomotives from China and now has to shell out more funds to get them rectified by German engineers

The Ministry of Railways is facing a financial loss of over US$100million because of defective railway engines it purchased from China and which it now has to get German experts to fix because the Chinese can’t rectify their own engines. The help of Germans engineers has been sought to modify the exhausts of these engines in order to improve their performance.

The imported railway engines were manufactured by a Chinese firm against a $100 million commercial loan to Pakistan. However, problems have now been discovered in the engines and the Chinese firm is unable to fix them. Hence, the railways ministry has approached German manufacturer MS Knorr Bremse to help fix the faulty engines. With US$100 million already spent on this project, insiders say a lot more money will be spent on this new contract with the German company.

Pakistan railways and the Chinese manufacturing company struck a deal in 2001 for the supply of 69 locomotives to Pakistan at a cost of US$100milion. So far, Pakistan has received 33 locomotives. Most of these developed serious problems within a year of being employed on the tracks and had to be withdrawn. The withdrawal of the engines from local routes caused substantial losses to the railways, forcing the ministry to suspend the import of the remaining locomotives from China.

The ministry also ordered an inquiry into how and why such engines were purchased. The inquiry was recently tabled in the National Assembly Standing Committee on Railways. The report reveals that Islamabad rejected the offer by Chinese manufacturers to repair the defective engines and asked them to replace the defective parts of the engines free of cost.

Intriguingly, however, the inquiry officer has remained silent about important aspects of the scam. Take, for example, the fact that in the inquiry report, a copy of which is with TFT, the inquiry officer has not named the railways ministry officials who approved the clearance of these defective locomotives. There is also no explanation in the report of why Pakistani railways engineers were unable to judge the poor quality of the imported engines at the time of their delivery.

The report also fails to identify whether the clearance of the defective engines was a “deliberate” act, the result of “inefficiency” on the part of concerned engineers or involved some “kickbacks” that might have gone into lining the pockets of a few powerful individuals.

The issue of the import of defective locomotives was also taken up in the Senate by PPPP (Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarians) Senator Dr Abdullah Riar. After the failings of the initial inquiry report were noted, the NA ordered that another inquiry be held into the deal.

The new report reveals that the US$100million deal was struck by then Railways Minister Lt-General (retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi who signed a deal with China on credit-basis and claimed at the time that the import of these new engines would revolutionise the railways system in Pakistan.

The report also reveals that the National Security Council (NSC) and the Cabinet approved the procurement of 69 Locomotives for Pakistan Railways during a joint session presided over by General Pervez Musharraf. Loans could not be secured from donor agencies because of the imposition of martial law in Pakistan, so it was decided that the locomotives would be acquired on the supplier’s credit.

Hence, an international tender with financial package was invited in December 2000 for procurement/manufacture of 69 locomotives. Technical offers opened on March 15, 2001 and the following firms participated in the tender: MS Dongfang Electric Corporation China, MS China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation China, MS General Motors USA and MS Tabani Corporation Karachi.

The offers of General Motors and MS Tabani Corporation Karachi were non-responsive because they were without earnest money. The remaining two offers with financial packages were processed through normal tendering process and the offer of MS Dongfang Electric Corporation China was accepted. The manufacturers of these locomotives were MS Dalian locomotives and Rolling Stock Works who are one of the leading manufacturers in China.

A US$100million deal was then signed with MS Dongfang Electric Corporation, China on November 8, 2001 under which 69 DE locomotives and 3-year maintenance spares would be imported by Pakistan. Eight CBU locomotives of 3000 HP were received in July 2003 and 7 of 2000 HP were received in August 2003. Eight SKD kits of 3000 HP locomotives were received in September 2003 which have since been manufactured and are online.

Another 8 SKD kits of 3000 HP locomotives were received at the locomotive factory in Risalpur at the end of December 2004 and are in the process of being manufactured and assembled. In total, 31 locomotives and kits have been received so far while 38 kits have still to be delivered.

The inquiry report says the performance of these locomotives in their first six months of operation was not satisfactory. A number of teething troubles were experienced resulting in an increase in the incidents of locomotive failure. Specifically, on February 1, 2005, cracks were noticed in the welding seams of the under-frames of 3000 HP locomotives and 9 out of 16 DPU-30 locomotives were withdrawn from service.

The matter was immediately reported to the manufacturers and suppliers who promptly deputed their high-level technical experts to analyse the problem and devise a solution. The experts, in a report, said they would strengthen weak areas of the under-frames of the 3000 HP locomotives already supplied to Pakistan.

Also, a high-level committee of five senior engineers of Pakistan Railways recommended that the warranty/guarantee of all strengthened under-frames be extended to another term of five years after repair. This would be sufficient time to detect any shortcoming in the strengthened/modified under-frames.

However, Pakistan Railways did not agree to the solution of these experts and instead said that under the warranty clause of the contract, the defective under-frames be replaced gratis. Railways officials demanded a fresh warranty of 5 years for the repaired under-frames and suspended the import of the 38 locomotives that still had to be delivered by the Chinese firm. In fact, the issue turned sensitive enough to summon the Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, who assured that the concerns of Pakistan Railways would be dealt with adequately.

In the meantime, having refused to let Chinese engineers fix the problems in the exhausts of the imported locomotives, the railways ministry contacted German manufacturers who have now suggested some modifications in the exhaust piping to avoid damage to the exhausts.

While the German experts have assured Pakistan Railways that the performance of the exhausts would be improved, the real problem not being addressed relates to the authorisation and clearance of defective engines leading to substantial revenue losses.

I also remember reading about how the specs for the engines called for a certain clearance between the engine and the platform edge. The porkis built the platform per specs but when the engines came in, the clearance was reduced to next to nothing!! Sorry, I cant find any link to this episode.

[rahulm]

The aerodynamic unit for Kashmir is a Diesel Multiple Electric unit (DEMU) examples of which run in India. For reference, Mumbai local trains are EMU's.

The aerodynamic shaping is a fibre glass fabrication and having eyeballed one, it does look jugadu and an afterthought.. But IR has always preferred function over form.

However, the Kashmir unit has many enhancements including the ability to operate at -10 deg.

[Singha]

because the Chinese can’t rectify their own engines.

must be a case of legendary cloning skills off a euroam design but weaker
understanding of the underlying design and its nuances.

[pankaj]

Rly asks pvt company to conduct feasibility survey of HP project
18 Jul, 2008, 1454 hrs IST, PTI


PALAMPUR: Railways have asked a private company to carry out a feasibility survey of broad gauging Pathankot-Jogindernagar line upto Leh, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal said on Friday.

The development comes in the wake of Himachal Pradesh government's demand of broadgauging the route.

"A private company has been entrusted by the Railways to survey the project," Dhumal told PTI after laying foundation of a road bridge here in Kangra district.

Estimated at the cost of about Rs 65,000 crore, the project would be of great importance considering its implications on country's security and tourism, he said.

With the centre reluctant to continue on the project earlier on the grounds that it was economically inviable, Dhumal had argued that it was strategically significant for India in view of China expanding its Railway line up to the borders.

Dhumal said the state Finance Commissioner Arvind Mehta had met Railway authorities in Delhi on June 23 in which it was decided to assign the survey work to a private company.

He recently pitched for the project with President Pratibha Patil during her Shimla tour and also to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.


http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/New ... 250047.cms

[Avinash R]

Stainless steel wagons flagged off
Chennai | Wednesday, Jul 23 2008 IST

Railway Board Member (mechanical) Raj Kamal Rao has flagged off the first stainless steel wagons at Carriage and Wagon Works here.

Carriage and Wagon Works in Perambur was the first Railway Workshop to rehabilitate and upgrade an open wagon (BOXN) into Stainless Steel body wagon, a Railway release here said.

Mr V Carmelus, Chief Mechanical Engineer, Southern Railway, Mr N L Madhusudan, Chief Workshop Engineer, Southern Railway, were among others present in the flagging off ceremony, held here on July 22, it said. The Indian Railways was in the process of manufacturing stainless steel wagons.

They were also upgrading the existing open wagons into stainless steel body wagons to improve their reliability and productivity. The upgradation of existing open wagons with stainless steel body has a potential to carry additional freight of 11.6 tonnes for each wagon.

For a rake of 58 wagons, it works out to additional freight of 673 tonnes, which is about 16.6 per cent higher than the existing pay load of a rake, the release said.

Railways to set up 3 production units under JV
Tiruchirapalli | Wednesday, Jul 23 2008

The Indian Railway will set up three production units under joint venture at a total outlay of Rs 4,400 crore, Railway Board Member (mechanical) Raj Kamal Rao said today.

Addressing the media after flagging off two metre-gauge locomotives and 23 refurbished MG coaches for Tanzanian Railways at the Golden Rock Railway Workshop (GOC) here, he said the production units were expected to meet the requirement for rail coaches and diesel and electric locomotives, arose out of the continous growth in passsenger and freight traffic.

Under the joint venture, a new railway coach factory would be set up at Rapereli in Uttar Pradesh at an investment of Rs 1,200 crore. A diesel locomotive unit at Madora in Bihar and an electric locomotive unit at Madepura in Bihar would also be set up at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore each.

He said the Railway Board was in the process of floating global tenders to finalise the private partner for the proposed projects.

But the units would take at least two to three years to roll out its products, he added.

The Railways had been adding 60 million tonne goods every year for the last three years and this figure was likely to go up in the current fiscal. There was a 12 per cent growth in passenger traffic every year.

Apart from setting up the new units, the production capacity of the existing units would be increased to meet the requirement. He said besides producing staninless steel wagons, the Railways had plans to increase the capacity of the existing wagons from 18.5 tonnes to 22.9 tonnes.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Carmelus, Southern Railway Chief Mechanical Engineer, claimed that this was the first time the Indian Railway was exporting such a huge consignment. The Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) had bagged an order for five more diesel locomotives from Malaysia, he added.

[MN Kumar]

Gautami Express catches fire in Andhra Pradesh; 20 dead

HYDERABAD: At least 20 passengers were charred to death and many others injured when a fire broke out in a moving train in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh early Friday.

The fire erupted in S-9 coach of the Secunderabad- Kakinada Gautami Express at 0115 hours near Kesamudram station in the district, about 250 kilometres from Hyderabad, South Central Railway spokesman P Krishnaiah said.

Railway Minister Lalu Prasad has announced compensation of Rs 5 lakh and a job to the next of the kin of those killed in Gautami Express fire.

Warangal district Superintendent of Police VC Sajjanar said 20 bodies have been found in the charred bogies and more could be trapped inside.

The mishap occurred between Tallapusalapalli and Mehboobabad stations when the passengers were fast asleep.

The fire was first noticed in S-9 coach by a head constable of Railway Protection Force who pulled the chain to stop the train.

State Tribal Welfare Minister D S Redya Naik, who visited the spot to oversee rescue operations, said he saw a large number of skulls bones of charred bodies and death toll could rise.

[MN Kumar]

Maytas consortium wins Hyderabad metro rail bid

The elevated metro rail project will have three routes--Miyapur to LB Nagar, Jubilee Bus Station to Falknuma and Osmania University to Shilparamam in the city

Hyderabad: A consortium of Maytas Infra Ltd, Navabharat Ventures Ltd, Ital Thai of Thailand and IL&FS Ltd has won the Rs12,200 crore or $2.87 billion Hyderabad Metro Rail project and will develop the 71km metro network on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis with a concession period of 30 years. The financial bids were opened here on Wednesday.
The other consortia that were shortlisted included one of Essar Constructions (India) Ltd, SREI, Singapore MRT, SEC and STE, another of Nagarjuna Construction Co. Ltd, Magna Allmore of Malyasia, Siemens AG of Germany and Emirates Trading Agency of Dubai, a third of Reliance Energy Ltd and Bombardier Transportation GmbH of Canada, and a fourth of the GVK group, Gammon, Alstom Corp. of France and IDFC Ltd.
“We have won the bid,” confirmed P.K. Madhav, chief executive officer of Maytas Infra.
Interestingly, the GVK consortium did not put in a financial bid—the second stage of the selection process. “The consortium partners felt that the project is not viable and decided to pull out,” said GVK group’s chief financial officer Issac A. George.
The elevated metro rail project will have three routes—Miyapur to LB Nagar, Jubilee Bus Station to Falknuma and Osmania University to Shilparamam in the city. On completion, the project is expected to ferry around 1.7 million passengers every day.
The Union government agreed earlier this year to offer a grant of 30% of the project cost. A key criteria for evaluation of the financial bids was the funding assistance sought by the bidder from the government.
“We did not seek any funding from the government for the project in our financial bid,” said Mohan Gurunath, head of BOT projects in Maytas Infra.
The project will have an equity component of 30% and debt component of 70% and the financial closure will be achieved in the next six to seven months. It will be completed within five years of the financial closure, Gurunath added. The state government has already earmarked 269 acres of land for the project.
Shares of Maytas Infra gained 19.80% to close at Rs494.25 each on Wednesday on the Bombay Stock Exchange, while shares of Navabharat Ventures rose 5.94% to Rs276.25 each. The exchange’s benchmark Sensex index gained 838.08 points or 5.94% to close at 14,942.28 points.

[MN Kumar]

Some more details on Hyderabad Metro:
Maytas-Nava consortium wins bid for Hyderabad Metro Rail

Nava Bharat Venture and Maytas Infra-led consortium has finally became the L1 bidder for the Rs 11,814 crore Hyderabad Metro Rail project, according to NVS Reddy, managing director of the company.

“The officers’ committee has submitted its report to the state government for its final approval. We hope to issue letter of approval (LoA) in the next 10 days,” Reddy said. There after, the company has to announce the financial closure in the next six months, he added.

Announcing the three-member committee decision to the media, Reddy said it had considered all the pros and cons including legal options before finalising the bid. “We have taken all the precautions including expert opinions on legal, technology and financial aspects, before finalising the bids,” Reddy said.

While GVK-led consortium had backed out after qualifying in the technical round, the remaining four bidders—Nava Bharat, Magna Allmore, Reliance, and Essar—have participated in the financial bids for the metro rail project.

Interestingly, the Nava Bharat-led consortium has agreed to pay Rs 30,311 crore to the government during the concession period of 34 years, while Magna Allmore had agreed to pay Rs 250 crore to the government towards equity in the SPV company.

However, the two other bidders--Reliance had sought a grant of Rs 2,811 crore from the government and Essar had asked a grant of Rs 3,100 crore. Hence, the committee had finalised the bid in favour of the Nava Bharat consortium after satisfying in other areas such as legal etc, Reddy clarified.

Considering cost escalation due to delay, the state government had revised the project to Rs 12,410 crore as against Rs 9,696 crore in November 2007. However, the Centre had limited the cost at Rs 11,814 crore while disagreeing to the state charges.

Metro rail is proposed on three routes—Miyapur to LB Nagar covering 29.87 km connecting 27 stations, Secunderabad to Falaknuma covering 14.78 km connecting 16 stations and Nagole to Shilparamam covering 26.51 km connecting 23 stations—with 66 stations and 71.16 km of track. The project is expected to be operational by 2011 as per the revised schedule.

[Malay]

I dont think that the new Metros being built in various cities should be of the same capacity of the Delhi Metro. Delhi Metro has ridiculously high ridership and it is getting REALLY crowded. Its hard now to get in the trains! On Peak hours you have to let many trains go just because there is no place to even enter the train...

They really should go for a higher gauge track or i dont know what, the present capacity is too low in the Indian context...country of scale...!

[SSridhar]

. . ., the present capacity is too low in the Indian context...country of scale...!

Anything in India should really be on a very high scale.

[Theo_Fidel]

http://www.greaterkashmir.com/full_stor ... =33&cat=14

The recent decision of Ministry of Railways to take away the USBRL (Udhampur Srinagar Baramulla Railway) project from Konkan Railway as well as to change the alignment of the track came as a shock to every techno and engineer associated with the project.

Sigh! No wonder Panda laughs at us.

What a bunch of maroons.

[Katare]

I dont think that the new Metros being built in various cities should be of the same capacity of the Delhi Metro. Delhi Metro has ridiculously high ridership and it is getting REALLY crowded. Its hard now to get in the trains! On Peak hours you have to let many trains go just because there is no place to even enter the train...

They really should go for a higher gauge track or i dont know what, the present capacity is too low in the Indian context...country of scale...!

This is a very good news Malay!! When they started that thing there were lotsa people who were worried that ridership is not going to justify the expanses. Trains used to be empty and were run with huge losses. It seems that feeder bus system (and RBTS, Petrol price hike) has really helped DM. Current ridership is running at 800K/day while in Mumbai 6+MM people take local trains each day. DM is running at very low capacity because riders were not there in early phase to justify buying additional trains. they have just put an additional order for ~132 new trains of 6 coachs each, including for new sections that'll be coming online. Soon you'll see additional capacity coming online.

I really like it when an Indian complains about a modern, brand new, offordable, clean and airconditioned metro because it is getting crowded now. We are making progress!!!

[Suraj]

In addition to the new 6-car trainsets, DMRC also appears to be planning to increase peak frequencies, which they can do. One more thing, that will gladden folks here, is a very interesting picture from a DMRC station:
Lines at Delhi Metro
Nice orderly queues. How about that

[Dileep]

I think that was a photo op picture. Can anyone confirm this is the general case?

The only place we queue up is at the Beverages Corporation outlet

[pradeepe]

That does seem to be a fotwa op. No where have I gotten away from any queue in India without smelling atleast 3 armpits. Throw in a f*** too if you are unlucky.

[Suraj]

DMRC now enforces queuing at the main stations these days, per SSC - the picture shows a DMRC guy maintaining order next to the platform. Haven't seen it in person myself. Back when I used Delhi Metro two years ago, there wasn't as much of a crowd anyway.

[Theo_Fidel]

http://www.indianexpress.com/story/345657-2.html

I guess this pretty much confirms it.

I think this is preparatory to canceling the project. 2025 indeed.

No full stops in this train journey

Raghvendra Rao

Posted online: Thursday, August 07, 2008 at 0113 hrs IST

New Delhi, August 6
A train may soon make its debut on a stand-alone 100-odd-km-long stretch in the Kashmir valley, but the dream of connecting Kashmir with the rest of the Indian Railways network again looks remote.

With works worth Rs 750 crore already executed and Rs 1,000 crore worth of contracts awarded on the Katra-Qazigund section — whose completion will finally allow a direct train to the Valley — the Railways Ministry has decided to suspend construction on a 70-km mountainous stretch. It is considering major changes in the alignment.

This not only threatens to push the project deadline to 2025, but will also lead to severe cost escalations and the abandonment of Rs 500 crore worth of works already executed.

In a recently issued order, a copy of which is with The Indian Express, the Railways Ministry has asked the Konkan Railways Corporation Ltd (KRCL) — the agency executing works on almost half of the Katra-Qazigund section — not to commence any new work on the 70-odd-km portion entrusted to it.

While suggesting some modifications in the works already executed, the ministry’s order says that “other than the main road works, all works on the entire section with M/s KRCL be pended till further advice”.

KRCL’s Managing Director Anurag Mishra confirms receiving the orders, through the Northern Railways, “which say that all works except the main road works should be pended till further orders”.

With engineers grappling with problems in cutting through the mountains, witnessing repeated collapse of tunnel portals and movement of excavated tunnels, the ministry is considering “radical changes” in the existing alignment, including the option to abandon it completely. An alternative alignment from Kilometre 30 to Banihal at a steeper gradient, with the option of a double line in twin tunnels, is being considered.

According to highly placed sources, the Railway Ministry did not keep the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) in the loop on this latest move. The PMO is learnt to have called a meeting on the project this week.

“A realignment is being thought of. The geology of the Himalayas is very fragile and the progress on this section in the last four years has been very poor,” said Railway Board’s Member, Engineering, S K Vij. “We rush into projects and we rush into targets because we are pressured to do that. Some part of the planning in this project was missing and corrections are required.”

Saying that a decision is expected soon, Vij added that the priority is to “make a line which will survive... If a line gets closed often, won’t it be unfortunate?”

The reasoning behind having lines inside tunnels is that these would be safer compared to tracks on exposed surfaces, vulnerable in terms of both security and geology and always at the risk of landslides.

Vij added that the new alignment would also require construction of just 70 km of line as opposed to the current 120 km. “One cannot promise that there will be no problems in the new alignment. But it will have lesser risk and even the cost of construction will be lesser,” he added.

However, not all within the Railway establishment toe this line. One argument against it is that the new alignment also falls in the same geology and may throw up similar problems. Many officials are of the view that minor modifications in the existing alignment would see the project through.

The proposal to have a steeper gradient is also being countered, with officials pointing out that increasing the gradient from 1 in 100 to 1 in 60 will make it extremely difficult to run longer loaded freight trains on the route. Others say having lines under tunnels raises questions of access, ventilation and safety.

The other argument against a new line alignment is that while the present one from Kauri to Banihal touches 50 major villages, the changed one may only touch eight big ones since a major portion of the track will be inside tunnels with the possibility of the longest tunnel stretching up to 26 km. “Economic development has already taken place in remote villages like Kauri, Surkot and Sangaldan in anticipation of railway stations coming up there. Since these villages will not figure in the new alignment, it may lead to local discontent. Also, with long tunnels proposed in the new alignment, construction of the proposed connecting roads will also have to be stopped, shattering the local aspirations of connectivity to remote areas,” said an official.
This is vital to keep in mind.
Incidentally, the proposed new alignment is currently only on paper and has not been subjected to any geo-technical investigations. Finalising it could take another three years. “This will push the completion date to 2025 and will escalate the total cost of the project to Rs 50,000 crore,” said an official, requesting anonymity. Currently, the project is estimated to cost Rs 13,000 crore.

It has also been pointed out that the land acquisition and forest clearances for this section took almost five years and are now at a very advanced stage.

The Railways Ministry will also have to contend with the repercussions of a change in the alignment now. “Contracts worth approximately Rs 1,200 crore have already been awarded and the contractors have been fully mobilised. Halting works means they will now sit idle and mount claims on the Railways for the delay,” a senior official said. “Further, works worth Rs 750 crore have already been completed and suspending them now will lead to another Rs 700 crore worth of claims from contractors.”

However, a section of senior Railway officials sees nothing wrong in considering a new alignment. “Things like these are bound to happen in difficult projects like these. Nobody could have determined in advance the kinds of challenges young mountains like the Himalayas could throw up. It is rather premature to jump to any conclusions. We are only talking of a new survey for an alternative alignment. There is no use constructing a line and burning your fingers later on,” a top Railway Board official dealing with the project said.

Incidentally, among those opposed to the ministry’s order to halt all works is Railway Board Chairman K C Jena. He has expressed clear reservations against abandoning the present alignment, calling this “unusual step” a “serious issue”. “The same could only be thought of provided the un-workability of the present alignment was totally established, along with the feasibility and technological suitability of the proposed alignment,” Jena wrote in an official communication following a recent inspection of the project. “Without necessary geo-technical investigations for the proposed alignment, possibly, it would not be prudent to abandon the present alignment as well as the works in progress,” Jena wrote.

Reasoning for change: ‘If a line gets closed, won’t it be unfortunate?’

• Lines inside tunnels would be safer compared to tracks on exposed surfaces, which are vulnerable to landslides, attacks.

• Would require construction of just 70 km of line as opposed to the current 120 km.

• Says Railway Board’s Member, Engineering, S K Vij: “We rush into projects and we rush into targets because we are pressured to do that. Some part of the planning in this project was missing and corrections are required.”

• Saying that a decision is expected soon, Vij added that the priority is to “make a line which will survive... If a line gets closed often, won’t it be unfortunate?”

Reasoning against change: ‘Will push completion to 2025, push up costs to Rs 50,000 crore’

• Proposed new alignment falls in the same geology and may throw up similar engineering problems.

• Increasing the gradient from 1 in 100 to 1 in 60 will make it extremely difficult to run longer loaded freight trains

• Having lines under tunnels raises questions of access, ventilation and safety.

• While the present alignment from Kauri to Banihal touches 50 major villages, the changed one may only touch eight big ones since a major portion of the track will be inside tunnels with the possibility of the longest tunnel stretching up to 26 km. “Economic development has already taken place in remote villages in anticipation of railway stations coming up there,” points out an official.

• No geo-technical investigations done yet on new alignment. Finalising it, getting clearances could take another three years.

[amitmas]

I think that was a photo op picture. Can anyone confirm this is the general case?

The only place we queue up is at the Beverages Corporation outlet

This is no photo op but reality onlee. We dilli billi's to board our prized metro were earlier pushed by copassengers and now by the guards to que up . Either ways pushing still remains a constant. On a serious note all large stations have guards maintaining ques now and it has had a pretty positive impact.

[Vick]

Renders of the New Delhi Station by Terry Farrell & Partners

[Singha]

travellers between delhi-gangetic belt keeping it that clean? tough to imagine.
we need taser armed police in the platforms and toilets.

also the IR trains need a good wash and new lighter colour - as usual.

[Vick]

These swanky new closed stations will trap all the wonderful smells that eminate from the trains' open toilets.

And where will the 2000 illegal rat colonies currently occupying ND station go? I demand they be rehabilitated properly in the new complex.

Speaking of the rats there, one of the funniest spectacles I have ever witnessed involving rats occured at ND station.

[Vipul]

India’s answer to Tibet rail: PMO clears plan for train to Leh via Rohtang.

In what is seen as India’s response to China’s Tibet Rail, the Prime Minister’s Office has given its in-principle approval to Himachal Pradesh’s proposal for a railway line to Leh via the Rohtang Pass. The high-powered China Study Group (CSG) has been asked to provide its assessment by the month-end.Simultaneously, the PMO has already instructed the Railway Ministry to carry out a proper feasibility survey of the Bilaspur-Leh route and submit its report latest by November. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, sources said, is keen that there should be no delay in taking the proposal forward.

The CSG that comprises the Foreign Secretary, Defence Secretary, Home Secretary besides heads of the Intelligence Bureau and RAW will now look into the project from a strategic perspective and give its comments by August-end. A favourable opinion from the CSG will elevate the strategic significance of the project and remove several funding barriers.

The plan on paper is to build a railway line from Bilaspur to Leh covering approximately 400 km which, by a broad estimate, could end up costing around Rs 5,000 crore. Already, the Centre has agreed to provide Rs 1,000 crore for building the railway line from Bhanupalli to Bilaspur which can be then extended further.Similarly, Rs 1,300 crore has been sanctioned for gauge conversion of the Pathankot-Jogindernagar railway line. The larger plan is that this line would intersect with the Bilaspur line that would carry on to Leh via the Rohtang Pass.

In all, the Centre is backing the Himachal government to build about 650 km of railway lines in the state which will have major strategic and economic significance. Currently, the broad estimate is that about Rs 8,000-10,000 crore will have to budgeted for this purpose.Now that the PMO has given its nod, sources said, the various proposals would move faster with considerable pressure being brought on the Railways to carry out the requisite technical work.

China began its work on the Qinghai-Tibet railway more than two decades ago. Unlike this case, the Chinese had to build 1,956 km and the first stretch rom Qinghai to Golmund was built by 1984 while the all-important and challenging 1,142 km Golmund-Lhasa line was inaugurated only two years ago.

India is already working on an ambitious railway line into the Kashmir Valley. Top officials say the projects in Himachal Pradesh must also be taken up without delay so that connectivity can be provided to the strategically important Ladakh region.The push has come from the state government that has been lobbying hard with the Centre on these projects. In fact, Himachal CM Prem Kumar Dhumal made a strong plea in writing to President Pratibha Patil during her visit to the state two months ago.

[Harish]

Recently I had an opportunity to travel on the 2951 Mumbai – New Delhi Rajdhani express. I had travelled long back (in 2001 I think); naturally I was excited to be travelling on this prestigious train again and was eagerly awaiting the d-day.

Little did I know what was in store for me!

The train arrived and I boarded, and immediately began the long series of disappointments that continue through the next 17 hours.

My side-berth was, to my unpleasant surprise, as narrow as in any other train. I had heard tall tales that seats are wider in the LHB coaches, but this is very clearly not true. With the lower side-berth, there is an additional nuisance – you have to join up the seats in the middle and this can make lying down on it uncomfortable if both seats are not aligned perfectly – which they did not on mine! IR had also decided to use the same dull blue dressing up for the seats. Worse, the seats were about as soft as the average Janata express ones.

The most unacceptable part: the LHB coaches accelerate or decelerate with a *tremendous* jerk. This is a known issue but you have to feel it to believe just how powerful and sudden it is. I spilled coffee over myself once and almost collapsed in the toilet before wising up and avoiding hot beverages altogether and restricting moving about as much as possible. For older people it is positively dangerous to travel in these coaches. They can cause serious injury.

I was expecting a quiet ride, but the LBH coach interiors are positively *noisier* than AC coaches on other trains. In addition, the acceleration/deceleration jerks are accompanied by mini-explosions that are sure to ruin your sleep, especially if you are near the cabin door, like I was.

Other cribs:

- The light fixture on my side-berth was gone, and in its place was a gaping hole with the wires (presumably live) peeping out from within. Probably meant for passengers who enjoy mild electric shocks.

- As in other train AC coaches, there was no airflow at all in the side-berth once the curtains are closed for the night. I was actually sweating at night and had to periodically open the curtain to admit some cool air. Combined with the misaligned bed, this makes for pretty good sleep destroyer.

- The food is bad, to put it politely. I’d say it is no better than the steaming pile they serve on the Chennai-Mumbai route, except that here you get it free.

- The coaches shake crazily at high speeds. Whatever happened to shock absorbers and stabilizers? You can be literally thrown off the floor – try walking around at night when the drivers notch up the throttle.

- Last but not least – the Rajdhani isn’t as fast as it is reputed to be. Most of the time the train runs close to 100-115 kmph, only marginally higher than the 110 kmph achieved by trains on Chennai-Mumbai route on which I travel frequently. Only occasionally does the Rajdhani touch 130 kmph, and when it does so you better be seated with a tight grip on your seat.

By the way, if anybody wishes to buy videos of the train running (shot bravely from the toilet window) please contact me. Nominal charges onlee.

[MN Kumar]

Those ND station renderings have a major flaw. They didnt counted the visitors. I think our stations should have a visitors area like the airports and restrict them from entering the platforms. This is a big security issue these days as the platform gets crowded. The Visitor to Passenger ratio is easily 5:1.

Only those passengers should be allowed on the platform whose Train is about to arrive. Others can wait in the lounge. Donno if its doable but we need this system.