Page 20 - Indian Railways

Railway accidents have reduced to just 40 per year: Ashwini Vaishnaw

Addressing concerns about railway accidents, Vaishnaw mentioned significant advancements in safety measures, including the completion of Kavach 4.2

Northeast Frontier Railway to run 26 special trains to tackle festive rush

The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) will run 26 special trains over the next two months to clear the festive rush, a statement said on Sunday. "NFR has proposed 26 special trains with 254 trips this year for the festive season," it said. These 13 pairs of special trains will facilitate smooth travel experience and accommodate extra passengers during the forthcoming festivals of Durga Puja, Diwali and Chhath Puja from October 1 to November 30, the statement added. In comparison to last year, NFR has almost doubled the number of special trains and trips during the festive period, it said. The special trains will cover important destinations like Amritsar, Bengaluru, Gorakhpur, Prayagraj, Kolkata, Anand Vihar and Shri Ganganagar, while also touching on other destinations. These trains will also boost connectivity within the zone during this period to areas such as Agartala, Naharlagun, Silchar, New Tinsukia, Dibrugarh and Katihar, the statement added.

Railways to run nearly 6K special trains this festive season: Vaishnaw

As the festive season approaches, Indian Railways has decided to run nearly 6,000 special trains to help more than one crore passengers get home for Durga Puja, Diwali and Chhath festivals. Besides, additional general coaches have been added to 108 trains and 12,500 coaches have been sanctioned to take care of the extra rush witnessed during festivals, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told a select group of journalists here. Several train routes, especially those destined for Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal witness heavy rush during Durga Puja, Diwali and Chhath festivals. Vaishnaw said a total of 5,975 special trains have been notified so far for this year's festival season, up from 4,429 last year. "This will facilitate more than one crore passengers to go home during this puja rush," he said. Durga Puja begins on October 9, Diwali will be celebrated on October 31 while Chhath Puja will take place on November 7 and 8 this year.

Holding talks with states, police to prevent train sabotage bids: Vaishnaw

Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday said the railway administration is on alert for potential train sabotage bids and is holding talks with the administration and police in several states to prevent any untoward incident. The central government treats security threats with the utmost seriousness and strict action will be taken against anyone attempting to sabotage trains, the railway minister told reporters at the Jaipur airport. "This is our commitment," he added. Vaishnaw arrived here on Tuesday to inspect a Kavach-fitted train to check the efficiency of the automatic train protection system at Sawai Madhopur. According to railway officials, the minister will board the Kavach-fitted engine of a train at 4 pm at the Sawai Madhopur railway station and travel for 45 minutes up to the Indargarh station. He is also scheduled to inspect a roof plaza constructed at the Gandhi Nagar railway station in Jaipur. Speaking to reporters, Vaishnaw said, "There is dialogue going on with

Ashwini Vaishnaw tests Kavach: Nationwide rollout set for 2030

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently conducted a detailed review of the Kavach’ Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system on the Sawai Madhopur- Kota railway route. Watch the video to know more.

Airlines, hotels make up 70% of India's $53 billion travel market: Deloitte

In 2023, airlines and hotels made up 70% of India's $53 billion travel market, with corporate travel valued at $10.6 billion. By 2030, the Indian travel industry is expected to touch $97 billion

Northern Railway cancels, diverts 29 trains after freight train derailment

The Northern Railway has cancelled three and changed the routes of 26 express and mail trains originating from various stations in Delhi due to the derailment of a freight train near Vrindavan Road Station between Palwal-Mathura section in Uttar Pradesh. Releasing a list of diverted and cancelled trains, Himanshu Shekhar Upadhyay, CPRO, NR said that due to derailment of train between Vrindaban Road - Ajhai Station on Mathura Jn - Palwal Section of Agra Division over NCR several trains will remain temporarily cancelled or diverted. Some of the prominent trains whose routes have been diverted are New Delhi-Hyderabad, New Delhi-Tambaram, Hazrat Nizamuddin-Mumbai Bandra Terminus, Amritsar Jn-Mumbai Bandra Terminus, Hazrat Nizamuddin-Mumbai CSM Terminus and Hazrat Nizamuddin-Jabalpur among others. On September 18, 25 coal-loaded wagons of a freight train derailed near Vrindavan Road Station blocking three rail lines and, according to Railways, only one line is available for rail traffic

FM reviews Railway Ministry's capex plan, asks to expedite 'Kavach' system

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday reviewed the capex plan of the Railways Ministry and asked officials to focus on safety and convenience of commuters. Sitharaman also told the officials to expedite the implementation of Kavach system (India's indigenous Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system) in a phased manner and meet the allocated capex target in the stipulated timeframe. MoR officials informed the Minister that Kavach-related works are currently in progress in over 3000RKm (route km) on the Delhi-Howrah and Delhi-Mumbai sections. "Underlining the focus of the government on providing 'ease of living' for citizens, Sitharaman urged the officials of the Ministry of Railways to focus on capacity augmentation, safety and commuter convenience, including doubling and electrification of existing railway tracks and also laying of new railway lines across the country as per the capex outlay provisioned in the Union Budget," a finance ministry statement said. Sitharaman als

Railways plans track upgrades, safety boost with outsourcing, simulators

The Indian Railways has developed a new safety plan that includes training loco pilots using simulators and outsourcing parts of maintenance operations

Govt to launch super app streamlining railway services: Ashwini Vaishnaw

Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that more than 5,300 km of railway tracks were laid in 2023, a distance comparable to Switzerland's entire rail network

Ashwini Vaishnaw issues stern warning amid rise in train derailment efforts

Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw's statement follows a series of train accidents, many of which are suspected to be part of a 'coordinated sabotage' to cause derailments

India's first Vande Metro between Bhuj, Ahmedabad to transform travel: Rlys

India's first Vande Metro, which will be virtually flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday in Gujarat is poised to transform inter-city travel with its advanced medium-distance capabilities, the Railway Ministry said. While PM Modi will be in Ahmedabad, the train will start from Bhuj and reach Ahmedabad covering 359 km of distance in 5.45 hours. For passengers, its regular service will start from September 17 from Ahmedabad and the total journey will cost Rs 455. While the other metros cover only short distances, Vande Metro trains will connect cities from the heart of the city to the peripheral cities," the ministry said. It added that the word metro' gives an impression of urban landscape, however, Vande Metro was conceptualised by incorporating numerous advancements. Giving a comprehensive overview of the Vande Metro and other Metros being operated in the country, the ministry said, "Vande Metro operates at a maximum speed of 110 km/h, offering faster acceleration

Urgent need of staff to manage assets, train ops: Railway Board Chairman

There is an urgent requirement for additional manpower to maintain the railways' ever-increasing assets and safe train operations, Board Chairman Satish Kumar has said, urging the Finance Ministry to give the board the power to create non-gazetted posts in safety and essential categories. In a letter to Manoj Govil, the Secretary (Expenditure) in the Finance Ministry, Kumar said the Railways has over the last few years witnessed a significant increase in capital expenditure -- from Rs 1.48 lakh crores in 2019-20 to 2.62 lakh crores in 2023-24. "This capital expenditure is resulting in significant increase in assets for which adequate manpower is required for Reliable and Safe Train Operation," Kumar said. "These assets will further increase in coming years considering Railways target of Mission 3,000 MT (by 2030) from current level of 1,610 MT," he said. Kumar argued that for achieving this objective, more trains will have to be run which requires increased manpower for both train

All about Indian Railways' health cards for free treatment of employees

Unique Medical Identification cards can be made at a cost of Rs 100

Railways accepts Phogat, Bajrang Punia's resignation effective immediately

The Railways on Monday accepted the resignations of wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, officials said. In separate notices issued on Monday, the Northern Railway said their resignations tendered on September 6 were "accepted by the competent authority with immediate effect." Both Punia and Phogat joined the Congress recently. Phogat has been given a party ticket to contest the Haryana assembly polls from the Julana constituency. The Northern Railway relaxed the provision of three-month notice period in their cases. Speculations were rife that Phogat might not be able to contest the elections in view of the notice period norm. According to election rules, she needed to get officially relieved from the Railways to be eligible to contest the October 5 polls. Now, since the Railways has relieved the two Olympians from their service, Phogat can contest the elections. The NR had earlier issued show cause notices to them after they met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi before joining

Railways served show cause notice to Vinesh Phogat on Sept 4: Officials

Northern Railway officials have confirmed that wrestler Vinesh Phogat was served a show cause notice on September 4, 2024 in which she was asked to clarify her position regarding joining a political party. When media reports came saying that Phogat would join the Congress party as she met Rahul Gandhi, a notice was issued to her on September 4," an official said. "She was asked to clarify her stand because being a government employee, joining a political party amounts to the violation of service rule, he added. Congress leader KC Venugopal on Friday alleged that Phogat was served a show cause notice after she resigned from the Railways, to which Himanshu Upadhyay, CPRO, Northern Railways, denied. She was not given any notice after she resigned, Upadhyay told PTI.

Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat resigns from her post in Indian Railways

Former India wrestler Vinesh Phogat on Friday resigned from the Indian Railways citing personal reasons amid speculations that she would be joining the Congress party. "Serving Indian Railways has been a memorable and proud time of my life," she posted on X with a picture of her resignation letter. She was employed as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) with Northern Railways. "At this point in my life, I have decided to separate myself from the railway service and have submitted my resignation to the competent authorities of the Indian Railways. I will always be grateful to the Indian Railway family for this opportunity given to me by the Railways in the service of the nation," she added. The 30-year-old wrestler had quit wrestling following her disqualification from the 50kg gold medal match in the Paris Olympics. She had appealed against the decision which was rejected by Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Cabinet approves Rs 18,036 cr railway line connecting Manmad and Indore

309-km rail line will give connectivity for 3 million people, add 26 MT freight

RRB NTPC 2024 notification out for 11,558 posts, registration to begin soon

The Railway Recruitment Board has released the official notification for the RRB NTPC Recruitment 2024. The recruitment drive aims to fill 11,558 vacancies

Govt greenlights Rs 18,036 crore for 309 km Mumbai-Indore rail line

Spanning 6 districts, the project will be the shortest rail line between Mumbai and Indore, expected to create direct employment for about 10.2 million man-days during the construction phase