Rlys Focus On Telecom, Freight Wagons

The new railway board chairman M Ravindra has identified two priority areas -- telecommunication and development of better freight carrying wagons, for modernisation of the Indian railways.

These are considered sine quo non for improving safety, efficiency and productivity in the railway system.

In an interview with Business Standard, Ravindra said in the telecommunication sector the thrust area is going for the solid state inter-locking system. To improve the efficiency and productivity of the wagons, the thrust area is to design wagons which can carry more freight.

Similarly, in the field of communications, the thrust is on ensuring a quick and reliable driver-guard communication system.

 

An allied area of emphasis is to encourage the private sector to lay cables along the railway lines which will not only yield revenue for the railways but would also provide it a free of cost communication channel.

The first joint venture optical fibre cable system is to be laid on the Mumbai-Chennai railway route and is expected to become start the initial operation in the next two or three years.

In the field of locomotives, he said, a lot of good work has already been done for both electric and diesel operated locos and in respect of coaches, and the Railways is going for a more modern coach which would be introduced in a year.

Ravindra has a good word about the locomotives purchased by the Railways from the multinational Asea Brown Boveri (ABB). He appears satisfied with the performance of the locomotives which he feels is of a "very very superior" type using a/c three-phase energy efficient technology, the kind of which is nowhere manufactured in India.

The development of this variety is just picking up at the Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) under an agreement for transfer of technology from ABB to CLW. The work is going on schedule.

Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL), he said, is essentially supplying the locomotives which have a dual voltage system and can operate on A/C as well as D/C.

As for their performance, Ravindra said he has no complaints. They have been working very well except for the teething troubles which is not unusual.

But, as for the supplies of the steel items also, the railways have no complaints except for the rails which is an area of "concern" for him.

Their sole supplier is Bhilai steel plant and in respect of one lot of supplies of about 20,000 tonnes, railways has already taken up the matter with the holding company steel authority of India (SAIL).

The price of the lot at an average rate of Rs 25,000 a tonne would broadly come to Rs 50 crore which railways would not pay unless either the supplies are replaced or the supplier establish to the satisfaction of the railways that the rails are worthy of use.

Their concern is particularly because the rails are an essential safety item.

Ravindra does not think that Railways had any major failures in it performance in 1996-97 while he has reasons to believe that Railways can boast of three outstanding achievements that year.

They are: 20 million tonne increase in freight transport ( from 390 million tonne to 410 million tonne), financial parameters-- earnings and expenditures, achieved within the limits laid down, and plan expenditures incurred as per the target. He mentions in this connection the target achievement of the gauge conversion work.

Yet, one area of concern for him is how to judiciously economise on investments and effect cost-cuttings. Where an alternative route is there, he does not think there is a sense in laying a new line.

Instead the potentials of the existing line can be utilised. Terminals need not be built in one go, but can be built in phases. Eighty per cent of the Railway's resources comes from its own sources.

The budgetary support is less that 20 per cent.

On cost cutting, he thinks there is a scope for 2.5 per cent reduction in the staff strength every year. But this he wants to achieve " without causing any industrial unrest". Reduction in staff is necessary because

" half of our expenditure is on staff. Every rupee we earn, half of it goes on staff including the pension". he wants to achieve this goal without either alienating the workers, or affecting their interest.

His scheme to achieve this by judicious shifting of the staff from a unit which is shut down to another unit where their services can be utilised. This means no fresh recruitment. But at the same time where it is a must, new staff must be recruited. He feels with this twin approach the staff strength can be reduced at the rate of 30,000 a year.

Staff reduction also is one of his thrust areas. Another area where he wants to introduce the cost cutting is reduction in the use of fuel without affecting the transport output and the efficiency of the system. Eighteen per cent of the railways' revenues accounts for fuel costs which he thinks can down to 15 per cent. In terms of money, it would mean an annual saving of at least Rs 75-80 crore a year.

To boost resources for the ninth plan, he disclosed, the railways has approached the government to permit it to utilise its unused land for commercial exploitation on a case by case basis. To begin with, it wants government permission for a piece of the railway land at Bandra for building a commercial complex as a pilot project.

His estimate is that if railways is permitted to utilise such unused lands, it will yield a total revenue of Rs 1,500 crore which would strengthen its financial base and help it implement modernisation schemes faster.