Page 15 - Indian Railways

Budget: Railway capex stays flat; revenue receipts set to cross Rs 3 trn

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has kept the outlay provided for capital expenditure (capex) in the Railways at Rs 2.65 trillion, almost the same as the 2024-25 budget estimate

Railway Ministry releases SuperApp 'SwaRail' for testing, prior to launch

The Railway Ministry has released an application called SuperApp, a one-stop solution offering multiple public-facing services, on Google Play Store for testing on Friday, an official said. "Only 1,000 users can download it. We will assess the response and feedback. After that, it will be made available for 10,000 downloads for further suggestions and comments," a Board official said. He added that the app provides easy access to services like reserved and unreserved ticket bookings, platform and parcel bookings, train inquiries, PNR inquiries, help through RailMadad and more. "The core emphasis of the app is to enhance user experience through a seamless and clean user interface. It not only combines all services in one place but also integrates several services to provide users with a complete package of Indian Railway services," Dilip Kumar, Executive Director of Information and Publicity at the Railway Board, said. He added, "The Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), on

364 trains ran for Maha Kumbh devotees from Prayagraj on Jan 29: Vaishnaw

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Thursday said 364 trains ran to various destinations from different stations of Prayagraj for the convenience of devotees returning home after taking holy dip in Sangam on the day of Mauni Amavasya on January 29. Dilip Kumar, Executive Director, Information and Publicity, Railway Board provided zone-wise details of 364 train operations and said besides these 364 trains which originated from Prayagraj to different destinations, 77 trains arrived in Prayagraj from other places. "During the entire period of (Maha Kumbh) Mela, the Railways has planned to operate about 13,450 trains, which include 10,028 regular trains and more than 3,400 special trains," Kumar added. Vaishnaw said approximately 12 lakh devotees have reached their respective destinations with the help of railway services. "Officials from the Railway Board as well as from three concerning zones are continuously coordinating with the state government to provide adequate train services

Here's why India's shiny new metros are just costly white elephants

In general, India's the opposite of China: If Beijing built too much infrastructure, New Delhi built too little. But the flashy new metro systems in smaller cities are an exception

2 yrs after deploying Kavach, Railway Board frames rules on its functioning

More than two years after deploying the Automatic Train Protection System Kavach on 1465 route km in the South Central Zone, the Railway Board has now included it in the Railway Act of 1989 through a recent Gazette notification and framed rules on its functioning. Kavach was adopted as the National ATP system in July 2020 and it was first deployed on 1465 route km in South Central Railway in 2023 and its further installation is ongoing. Safety experts said the deployment helped develop understanding about its functioning and optimisation which further assisted in making rules for its implementation. The government published a gazette notification on January 2 according to which, the Railway Act of 1989 was amended to include Kavach along with its definition. The Board separately framed new rules regarding its functioning and the role of the safety department in Kavach operational territory. On January 20, 2025, the Railway Board sent a written communication with these documents to

Budget 2025: Indian Railways subsidies and how they compare with Europe

Budget 2025: Indian Railways heavily subsidises train fares, particularly for senior citizens, students, and people with disabilities-but by how much?

IRCTC, RVNL: Can Budget 2025 trigger a rally in rail stocks? Tech view here

Railway-related stocks such as IRCTC, RVNL, Texmaco, RailTel and Container Corp are testing support on the long-term charts; as long as these supports are respected a pullback rally seems possible.

Jalgaon train accident occurred due to fire rumour: Maha dy CM Ajit Pawar

After 13 people lost their lives in Jalgaon train accident, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday said that the incident occurred after rumours of fire in the train which created panic among the travellers and as a result, people started jumping off the train and subsequently was hit by another speeding train.Pawar stated that the rumour was spread by two persons Udhal Kumar and Vijay Kumar, when they heard a tea seller shouting about a fire in the bogie after which both of them panicked and subsequently people started jumping off the train to save themselves.Speaking to reporters, Ajit Pawar said, "After the railway incident, the administration and other forces got active and started the relief & rescue operations... Udhal Kumar and Vijay Kumar from Shravasti were on the train... They were travelling in the general bogie and were sitting on the upper berth... One tea seller from the pantry shouted about a fire in the bogie, both of them heard that and ...

Jalgaon train mishap: Toll rises to 13, ex-gratia of Rs 1.5 lakh announced

The incident happened when passengers of the Pushpak Express had stepped outside their coaches due to a suspected fire on the train, and while outside Karnataka Express passed through adjacent track

Jalgaon tragedy: 12 dead as passengers jump off train after fire rumour

The Ministry of Railways did not confirm the number of casualties at the time of publication. Over 40 people are feared to have been injured

E10 bullet train to debut in India and Japan simultaneously in 2030

The Shinkansen E5, with a top speed of 320 km/hr, was India's earlier plan. However, the transition to E10 model offers a more advanced version with a top speed of 400 km/hr, enhancing speed & safety

Railways to introduce freight-cum-passenger trains to boost cargo ops

Prime Minister's Office keen on the project, discussed during the latest sectoral review, officials said

IRFC Q3 results: Net profit rises 2% to Rs 1,631 cr, income at Rs 6,766 cr

Indian Railway Finance Corporation Ltd (IRFC) on Monday reported a 2 per cent increase in net profit to Rs 1,631 crore for the third quarter ended December 2024. The NBFC, under the administrative control of the Ministry of Railways, had earned a net profit of Rs 1,599 crore in the year-ago period. The total income of the company rose to Rs 6,766 crore in the October-December period from Rs 6,740 crore in the year-ago period, IRFC said in a regulatory filing. The total expenses of the Mini-Ratna company during the period under review fell marginally to Rs 5,136 crore from Rs 5,141 crore in the corresponding period a year ago. The networth of the company rose to Rs 52,046 crore at the end of December 2024 compared to Rs 47,443 crore at the end of third quarter of previous fiscal. The company raised Rs 6,600 crore via bonds during the quarter to fund business expansion.

Indian Railways to receive 170 MW of solar energy from Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh government plans to increase the production capacity of renewable energy to 20,000 MW by the year 2030

LTC travel now has 385 premium trains for govt employees: Railway Ministry

The Ministry of Railways has made significant strides in improving the travel experience for government employees by expanding the number of trains available under Leave Travel Concession (LTC).According to a press release, government employees can travel on 385 premium trains, including 136 Vande Bharat, 97 Humsafar, and 8 Tejas Express trains, alongside 144 existing high-end trains like Rajdhani, Shatabdi, and Duronto.The press release stated that government employees were already availing luxurious AC travel in 144 existing high-end trains in the category of Rajdhani, Shatabdi & Duronto series. With this decision, there will be a total 385 trains across all the regions of the country where they are operating in which tickets can be booked for LTC travel by the government employees.This expansion, announced by the Department of Personnel & Training, is aimed at providing all central government employees access to world-class travel options. Under the new guidelines, ...

Rail operators likely to post double-digit growth in FY25: India Ratings

Rail operators' revenue is expected to grow into double-digit, while warehousing sector is projected to log a 3-5 per cent year-on-year growth in organic rentals this fiscal even as the demand for Grade-A space may remain intact, ratings agency India Ratings said on Friday. For sea transport, the ratings agency said, it is expecting port volumes will be supported by the coastal movement of goods and global container freight, with the easing of geopolitical tensions, including the Red Sea crisis and the normalisation of US-bound traffic. EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) for container freight stations is expected to remain range-bound due to the increase in the proportion of direct port delivery and high competition intensity at large ports, according to Ind-Ra (India Ratings). Ind-Ra has also assigned an improving outlook for the logistics industry for FY26 and said that macro-tailwinds arising from the government's multipolar investments acros

Train delays declined 8% in 2024; late run by Vande Bharat rose 21%

Delays on mail, express, and superfast trains reduced by 6%

Railway stks RVNL, Transrail, others surge up to 11% on higher capex hopes

The capital expenditure (capex) allocation for the railway sector is expected to rise by 20 per cent in Budget 2025-26, according to reports

Railway Board gives recognition to two unions, AIRF, NFIR for five years

The Railway Board has given recognition to two federations of rail employees, the All India Railwaymen's Federation (AIRF) and the National Federation of Indian Railwaymen (NFIR), for five years after their victory in the recently held secret ballot elections. While recognizing the two federations, the board said that they have to follow the provisions of Indian Railway Establishment Manual and they will not maintain any political fund. Board has decided to accord recognition to the two Federations namely All India Railwaymen's Federation and National Federation of Indian Railwaymen at Railway Board level for a period of five years, a board's letter dated January 13 said, specifying certain conditions for them to abide by. On November 17, 2024, the Railway Board had constituted a Secret Ballot Election Committee-III (SBEC-III) which proposed certain norms for contesting federations to get recognition. Based on those norms, secret ballot elections were held for three days from Decem

Seizing 'winds of opportunity', Railways explores turbines along tracks

Experts raise concerns over logistics, safety risks