India's first private train to be on track by April 2023: Indian Railways

The Railways indicated that the plan to rope in private players came after an estimate showed that passenger traffic is expected to grow by 55 per cent from the current level by 2030

India will see its first privately operated train running by April 2023 and the bidding process for this will be completed by April 2021, a top Indian Railways executive said on Thursday.

The national transporter had invited requests for qualifications (RFQ) from private players on Wednesday to operate 151 trains covering 109 routes that might see investments of Rs 30,000 crore. 

“We intend to start operation of the first private operated train in India by April 2023,” said VK Yadav, chairman of the Railway Board. These trains will be operated on a revenue neutral model.

According to the plan, the