Railways registers higher cumulative freight loading till Feb 28 than FY20

Freight loading crossed 5 million tonnes on February 28, the ministry said

The Railways' freight loading this financial year till February 28 has surpassed last year's figures for the same period, despite the challenges posed by COVID-19, the ministry said on Monday.

As on February 28, Indian Railways' cumulative freight loading was 1,102.17 million tonnes for this financial year, which is higher than 1,102.1 million tonnes recorded for the corresponding period last year, it said in a statement.

Freight loading crossed 5 million tonnes on February 28, the ministry added.

"On a month to month basis, up to February 28, 2021, Indian Railways loading was 112.25 million tonnes, which is almost 10 per cent higher compared to loading up to February 28 of last year (102.21 million tonnes).

"On day to day basis, on 28th February, 2021, the freight loading of Indian Railways was 5.23 million tonnes, which is 36 per cent higher compared to last year's loading for the same date (3.83 million tonnes)," the statement said.

The average speed of freight trains in February 2021 was 46.09 kmph, which is more than double compared with the figures from the corresponding period last year (23.01 kmph). On February 28, the average speed of freight trains was 47.51 kmph. Last year, it was 23.17 kmph for the same date, the ministry further said.

The statement added that in February 2021, Indian Railways earned Rs 11,096.89 crore from freight loading, which is 7.7 per cent higher compared with last year's earnings for the same period (Rs 10,305.02 crores).

On February 28, Indian Railways earned Rs 509.44 crores from freight loading, which is 34 per cent higher than last year's figures for the same day (Rs 378.56 crores).