Development of Railway infra set for major boost

The year 2023 is widely believed to be a game-changer for Indian Railways, after the success of Vande Bharat Express trains with the introduction of hydrogen-powered Vande Bharat trains, the sleeper coach version of Vande Bharat. Indian Railways is currently building hydrogen-fuel cell powered eco-friendly Vande Bharat trains to replace those that were designed in the 1950s-60s, which, according to Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw would nark a significant step for railways

In the upcoming Railway Budget, the emphasis will be on developing infrastructure, 'Make in India' high-speed trains and completion of all pending projects.

Understandably, in the Union Budget 2023-24, focus of the Narendra Modi government will be on infrastructure development, especially projects related to Railways and making high-speed trains operational by an early date.

The Union government is working on increasing the railway budget by 20-25 per cent in order to boost infrastructure across the entire railway system. According to sources in the Railways Ministry, there is a possibility of an allocation of nearly Rs 1.8 lakh crore for this sector in 2023-24, compared to Rs 1.4 lakh crore in 2022-23. Ministry officials indicate that there will be an increase in allocation for laying new tracks, introducing new semi-high-speed Vande Bharat and hydrogen-powered trains apart from expediting the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project.

Indian Railways is likely to seek Centre's nod to complete the process of replacing conventional coaches of all express and mail trains with India-made and German-developed Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches.

As part of Vision 2024, in the second half of the decade, apart from commissioning new dedicated freight corridors and high-speed passenger corridors, also proposed are multi-tracking and signaling upgrades of congested routes. They aim to rapidly redevelop infrastructure of more than 1,000 stations under the AMRUT Bharat Station scheme. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Corridor (MAHSR) was hit hard by land acquisition issues. As per the information presented in Parliament by the Ministry of Railways, the overall physical progress on the 508.09 km corridor as on December 31, 2022, was only 24.73 per cent.

During the financial year 2022-23, the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) was allocated Rs 19,102 crore. According to Railway Ministry sources, the cost of the bullet train project is likely to exceed the projected Rs 1.08 lakh crore.

There is a likelihood that that the Union government could increase the budget of Railways by up to 20 per cent, in the backdrop of the Railway Board seeking a 25-30 percent increase in the Union Budget allocation during a pre-budget meeting. The upcoming Union budget could possibly earmark nearly Rs two trillion to the Ministry of Railways.

The Central government will invest mostly in modernisation of railways. Along with this, the railways are focusing on building better domestic manufacturing infrastructure besides reducing dependence on overseas manufacturers of wheels.

The government may also announce more than 400 new rakes of semi-high speed Vande Bharat trains and over three dozen hydrogen-powered passenger trains.

Accordingly, announcement of new trains, including new Vande Bharat and hydrogen-run passenger trains is likely to be made in the upcoming annual budget 2023-24.

The year 2023 is widely believed to be a game-changer for Indian Railways, after the success of Vande Bharat Express trains with the introduction of hydrogen-powered Vande Bharat trains, the sleeper coach version of Vande Bharat.

Indian Railways is currently building hydrogen-fuel cell powered eco-friendly Vande Bharat trains to replace those that were designed in the 1950s-60s, which, according to Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw would mark a significant step for railways. Hydrogen-powered trains will now operate keeping in view the needs of the middle and lower classes. These trains will prove to be helpful in bringing a transformational change in the daily lives of every Indian citizen. It is one of the biggest green initiatives of Indian Railways. As per information, hydrogen trains can save fuel and produce minimum noise resulting in no pollution at all as they will reportedly emit only steam and evaporated water. Incidentally, they will be the world's second hydrogen-run train after Germany pioneered such exclusive trains.

While the exact date of the launch of hydrogen trains is yet to be revealed, Vaishnaw has hinted at May/June for the designs to arrive. An important announcement can also be made about the hydrogen trains in the upcoming Union Budget.

Some major railway projects

Chenab River Railway Bridge: The world's highest single-arch railway bridge is being built over the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir. This 1.3-km-long project with a budget of $9.2 crore will connect Kashmir Valley to the rest of India through a rail network. The Chenab river railway bridge is a part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link project.

The Chenab River Railway Bridge is a joint venture between Afcons Infrastructure (India), VSL India and Ultra Construction & Engineering Company of South Korea. This is another step towards reaching Kashmir by rail.

Operation of Rapid Train: Rapid train is to be operated between Delhi and Meerut in 2025. This entire railway corridor is to be completed in three sections. Its first section is 17-km-long connecting from Sahibabad to Duhai Depot and is tentatively marked for taking off in March. Having completed the track work, works to install overhead equipment line are underway.

Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train: Construction has begun along a parallel line passing through eight districts of Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. After being in limbo for years, the bullet train project has picked up pace recently, including in Maharashtra. According to railway officials, the project could be completed in 2027. Bairabi-Sairang New Line Railway Project: Work is underway on the Bairabi-Sairang New Line Railway Project that will connect Mizoram with the rest of the country. This will mark a new era in terms of communication and commerce in NE states, especially Mizoram. The Bairabi-Sairang project aims to create an additional 51.38 km of railway track in the region.

Bhalukpong-Tawang line: The Bhalukpong-Tawang line is one of the important projects of the northeast, which will cater to the extensive needs of the military in the region where tensions with China have escalated. The proposed railway line will have several tunnels and will be built at altitudes above 10,000 feet.