The Ministry of Railways’ recent decision to open doors for private trains could have sparked off a major debate, but amidst other issues, caused relatively lesser backfires. This issue or the issue of trains allegedly being ‘lost’, nevertheless found its way in the mainstream politico-economic discussion. The Bullet-train project of the government also never remained aloof from controversies. However, there are certain projects of the Indian Railways, which for strange reasons could never come under deliberation. The execution and exhibition of these projects were done in such a fashion, that for all the resources drained and wasted by the Ministry of Railway, all that it received was never-ending acclamation. I've tried to enlist some of these plans, and explain why they do not deserve the commendation they obtained.
$2.5 Billion Contract with General Electric (GE)
The Ministry of Finance has stated that in the next 3 years, Indian Railways will aim to achieve the full electrification of its tracks. However, at the same time, the Ministry of Railways signed a $2.5 billion deal with the American multinational conglomerate GE (General Electric) for the supply of 1000 Diesel locomotives for goods train over 11 years. The two series of locos under this project (WDG-4G and WDG-6G) are to be manufactured in Marhowrah, Bihar as a part of the government’s Make in India scheme. The government alone knows what will be done with these diesel locomotives once IR is done with the full electrification.
Those defending this project give the following arguments:
a. The locomotives will be used in an emergency, in case of power failure in the overhead wires.
b. They might be used as bankers in hilly terrain to haul goods train.
c. The production of these locomotives in Marhowrah (Bihar) will generate employment opportunities in a state whose residents are severely underemployed.
These arguments, however, can be invalidated if we fathom that:
a. Once full electrification is done, most of the already functional diesel locomotives will be out of use.
b. The cases of power failure in overhead electric wires are rare. If at all it happens, we already have sufficient diesel locos, which would not be in regular service by then, to deal with such emergencies.
c. To generate more power and speed while hauling goods train in hilly terrain, twin or triple diesel locomotives, that would have no other works can be used.
d. Production, no doubt will generate employment. But the government needs to be reminded of one the most basic production principles- ‘what to produce’. Had IR gone for the production of a Loco Shed, or even electric locos for that matter, the generation of employment would make some sense. But the paradox of bringing more diesel locomotives after full electrification is apparently ridiculous.
WDG-4G locomotive (GE)
Project Utkrisht
To understand this project, it’s important to note than the trains in India, currently use majorly two types of coaches: Conventional ICF and LHB. Under the aforementioned project, IR has planned to develop 640 Utkrisht Rakes (around 15,360 coaches) by upgrading the conventional ICF coaches at a cost of ₹400 crores.
Indian Railways has stopped manufacturing Conventional ICF coaches and are replacing them with LHB coaches. This is because LHB coaches are safer and can be hauled at a greater speed. All the rakes are subsequently being ‘LHBfied’ rapidly. However, at the same time, the government comes up with a project to upgrade something, that anyway is going to be discarded in a couple of years.
Let’s also understand what these upgradations are. Ideally, an upgraded ‘Utkrisht’ coach is supposed to have LED lights inside the coach, better flush system and ventilators in washrooms, more charging points, and a cover of PU paint, in beige colour over the coaches. Tragically, in most of the rakes, the upgradation has meant only a change in colour- from blue to beige. ₹1.4 crore per train, just to get the exteriors of the train, painted in something that looks worse than what it did earlier.
To make it clearer, let’s see an example: The conventional ICF coaches of Amravati-CSMT Exp (12111/12) was upgraded into Utkrisht, at a cost of around ₹1.4 crores. However, within a couple of months, the train got new LHB coaches, and the upgraded, modified Utkrisht coach was discarded. This is just one instance! Does it make any sense spending crores on something that goes out of use within a few months, or in some cases, within a day?
In the picture: Conventional ICF (above), Utkrisht (below)
Push-Pull Technology
This technology makes use of two engines, wherein one locomotive is attached to the front of the train, and the other to the rear. The front one pulls the train, while the rear one pushes it. This is ideally meant to provide an increase in speed, acceleration, and improve braking efficiency. This plan, however, is not as effective as it seems. The reasons are categorically stated here:
The Maximum Permissible Speed (MPS) at which the fastest train of India- The Gatimaan Express, operates is 160 km/h. The MPS for all other trains are evidently less (100-150 km/h).
The top speed of most of the locomotives that haul these trains are around 150-180 km/h. When a single locomotive has the capacity to haul the trains at a greater speed than the maximum permissible speed of the coaches, what’s the use of having twin push-pull locomotives for that purpose? The argument of acceleration also doesn’t hold firm grounds, because the stations in India are over-crowded, and trains need to pick up slow or moderate acceleration to prevent the possibility of any casualties. A small technical glitch in the synchronization of the front and trailing engines can result in a terrible mishap.
Push-pull locomotives were officially commissioned for the first time in Central Railways’ CSMT-NZM Rajdhani. There is no denial of the fact that it was needed there (to eliminate the need for attaching and detaching bankers, thereby saving precious time). However, the aim of Indian Railways to go for push-pull locomotives in all the trains is certainly not the wisest idea.
The pictures of the recently manufactured twin push-pull locomotive, ‘Aerodynamic WAP-5, Tejas Livery’ has surfaced across and IR is being commended for the same. This again was never needed. The fact that CLW produced 2 locomotives, specifically for a private train (IRCTC Tejas) is alarming. This also reveals the neglect of the ministry towards other premium trains like Rajdhanis, Shatabdis, and Durontos.
Figure displaying the working of push-pull engines
Where else could have the Indian Railways worked upon instead of wasting resources in the aforesaid projects? In my opinion, the perfect plan would be to install the Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) across all railway lines in India. This technology is used to initiate the emergency breaks of train automatically if it happens to pass over Red Signals. As of now, TPWS is installed only in some High-Speed Rail Sections in India. If set up in all main and loop lines, the railway accidents due to collision will reduce to 0%.
TPWS installed in a railway track
That being said, it is exigent to acknowledge the efforts of the Railway employees, who amidst the pandemic have managed to accomplish 200 pending maintenance projects. The government, however, clearly needs further deliberations with the RDSO and Railway Ministry on whether some projects, if possible, can be terminated with immediate effect. The Ministry of Railways ought to be wiser in its plans and look for the long-term implications of the project they undertake.
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