Railways launches pilot project to promote production with AI, big data

A pilot project for ushering in Industry 4.0 in the country has been launched at the Modern Coach Factory in Uttar Pradesh's Raebareli district, the railways said on Saturday.

Industry 4.0, commonly referred to as the fourth industrial revolution, is a name given to the current trend of automation, inter-connectivity and data exchange in manufacturing technologies to increase productivity.

Industry 4.0 is a complex cyber-physical system which synergies production with digital technologies, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Analytics, Machine Learning and Cloud Computing.

The Ministry of Railways and the Department of Science and Technology have joined hands in partnership with IIT Kanpur for taking up a unique project on 'Industry 4.0'. They launched the pilot project on Friday for implementation at the Modern Coach Factory, an official statement said.

Speaking on the occasion, Secretary Department of Science & Technology Ashutosh Sharma said that his department has recently launched a new programme 'InterdisciplinaryCyber Physical Systems(ICPS)' to foster and promote R&D in this emerging field of research.

He said about Rs 4,000 crore is expected to be spent in years to come in this area.

Railway Board, Member Rolling Stock, Rajesh Agrawal said that the initiative is expected to make India an advanced Industrial economy with exponential growth in jobs.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address in Houston on September 22 had highlighted the importance of 'Industry 4.0' in global economy and India's advantage.