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In the quest to Vikasit Bharat 2047, Indian Railways continued its transformative journey in the year 2024, paving the way for a new era of modernization and progress. With a strong focus on meeting world class travel experience, boosting freight efficiency, and adopting advanced technologies, the Railways has solidified its role as a catalyst for national growth. Modern stations, state-of-the-art trains, and innovative safety systems are reshaping the landscape of rail travel. Committed to sustainability, the Railways is steadily moving towards greener operations while driving economic development through extensive infrastructure upgrades and capacity building. This year has reaffirmed its vision of becoming a world-class transportation network, blending tradition with innovation to meet the needs of a dynamic and evolving nation.

Enhancing Rail Track Infrastructure & Speed

Track Renewal Works:

o   6200 Track km rails have been renewed with new rails.

o   Complete track renewal for 6450 track km have been done.

o   Through Turnout Renewal of 8550 sets have been done.

Raising of sectional speed:

• Raising of sectional speed to 130 kmph has been done over 2000 track km covering parts of Golden Quadrilateral and Diagonal routes and other B routes.
• Raising of sectional speed to 110 kmph have been done over 7200 track km.

Project Engineering & Management:

• All the pending cases of Engineering Department of various Zonal Railways on Indian Railways E-Procurement System (IREPS) have been disposed off under “onetime settlement scheme called “Vivad Se Vishwas II (Contractual Disputes)”.
• In order to address uncertainties in the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) tendering mode, a new “Schedule G-1” has been included for separate Bill of Quantities (BoQ) for itemized works.
• Master policy for Dispute Redressal Mechanism has been issued for appointing the Conciliator/ DAB member/ SAT member/ Arbitrator(s) and fee payable to them.
• In case of Project Management Services (PMS)/ Project Supervision Services Agency (PSSA) contracts, Procedure order for Measurement, Test Check limit, Material passing and Payments etc. has been issued.
• To fast pace the completion of projects, Powers of Acceptance for Works Tenders have been enhanced to various Accepting Authority including full powers to Chief Administrative Officer/Construction for all works contracts including Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) tenders. Other powers of Modal SOP -2018 have also been delegated to field units for fast execution of projects.
• Electronic Reverse Auction (e-RA) for works tenders has been made optional only.
• Four new modules have been made for web based CRS Sanction Monitoring System like

1.Opening of additional lines of railway and deviation lines (New Lines/GC/Doubling etc.)

2.Rebuilding of major & Important Bridges (New, Modification)

3.Sanction of Minor Works:- Level Crossings (Manning, Upgradation, Interlocking, New LC, Shifting, LHS)

4.Remodelling of yards

• Procedure Order for Opening of Minor works by Principal Chief Engineer in reference to the Gazette Notification for the Railways (opening for public Carriage of Passengers) Amendment Rules, 2024 has been issued.
• Modified MCNTM (Manpower and Cost Norms for Track Maintainers) formula- 2024 regarding ‘norms/yardsticks for Track maintainers’ has been issued.
• A new Primary Units (Objects) of Expenditure (Revenue) for outsourcing of manpower/ activities for track maintenance” has been created by naming “PU-49”.

Construction of Road Over Bridges (ROBs)/Road Under Bridges (RUBs) during the year 2024 (Jan to Nov.2024) is as under:

• Elimination of Manned Level Crossings — 718 Nos.
• Construction of ROBs/ RUBs -1024 Nos.

Gati Shakti Projects

1. Gati Shakti Multi-Modal Cargo Terminal

In order to boost investment from industry in setting up of cargo terminals, ‘Gati Shakti Multi-Modal Cargo Terminals (GCT) are being developed across the country.

• So far, 354 locations (327 on non-railway land and 27 on railway land) have been identified across the country.
• Till 31.10.2024, 91 GCTs have been commissioned.

2. Sanction of Three Economic Corridors in 2024

Under these three corridors namely

(i)Energy, Mineral and Cement Corridors;

(ii)High Traffic Density Routes and

(iii)Rail Sagar corridors,

A total 434 projects have been planned for implementation under these three corridors. In the calendar year 2024, a total of 58 projects out of total 434 projects were sanctioned across three economic corridors, with a combined completion cost of about Rs.88,875 crore and a total track length of about 4,107 kilometers.

• The Energy, Mineral & Cement Corridors accounted for 51 projects, spanning 2,911 kilometers with a completion cost of Rs. 57,313 crore.
• The High Traffic Density Routes included 5 projects, covering about 830 kilometers and costing about Rs. 11,280 crore.
• The Rail Sagar corridor had 2 projects, with a total track length of about 366 kilometers and a completion cost of about Rs. 20,282 crore.

3. Commissioning of projects in 2024 till date

Indian Railways have achieved total commissioning of 3433 Km from 01.04.2024 to till date, which includes 1158 Km New Line, 259 Km Gauge Conversion and 2016 Km Doubling.

4. Electrification during calendar year 2024.

3,210 Rkms has been electrified during calendar year 2024 & electrified & BG Network of IR has been extended to 97%.

Station Redevelopment:

• Under ‘Amrit Bharat Station Scheme’, 1337 stations have been identified for redevelopment.
• Out of 1337 stations, Tenders have been awarded and work has commenced in 1198 railway stations. Other Railway Stations are at different stages of tendering and planning. Redevelopment of Railway Stations across the country will have a multiplier effect in the economy with increased job creation and improved economic growth.
• Six railway stations viz Rani Kamlapati Station of West Central Railway, Gandhinagar Capital station of Western Railway, Sir M. Visveswaraya Terminal Station of Śouth Western Railway, first phase of Gomti Nagar Railway station of North Eastern Railway, Ayodhya railway station of Northern Railway and Cuttack Railway Station of East Coast Railway have been developed and commissioned.

Information Pertaining to Telecom :-

1. No Elephant Intrusion Detection System (EIDS): This has been commissioned at critical vulnerable location in NFR (Northeast Frontier Railway) for preventing accidents involving elephants.

• Works have been sanctioned for this purpose covering NFR, ECoR, SR, NR, SER, NER & WR Zones of Indian Railways having a total cost of 208.02 crores. Further, works on 582.25 km (NFR-141 RKms + ECoR-349.4 RKms + SR- 55.85 RKms + NER-36 RKms) have been awarded. The system has been commissioned over 141 RKms at present.

2. Development of an Application for monitoring of Coach Guidance System (CGS) and Train Indicators Boards (TIB) integrated with NTES: Railway Board has advised to Zonal Railways and CRIS to integrate the CGS & TIB complying to RDSO specifications Revision-4 and using API based interface. CRIS has developed an application for monitoring of Integration of IPIS with NTES.

3. Centralized Announcement System: Centralized Public Address System has been provided at all stations of Bhopal Division under WCR and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya (DDU) Division under ECR.

4. Use of Digital VHF sets over Indian Railways: Communication between Loco pilot and Guard. To harness the advantages offered by Digital technology based VHF sets, Railway Board has approved that only Digital 5W Walkie-Talkie sets shall be procured over Indian Railways.

5. Tunnel Communication System: The project for provision of Tunnel Communication has been taken up in various Railways.

6.  Optical Fiber Cable (OFC): In the FY 2023-24, Indian Railways have provided 1411 Rkms of Optical Fiber Cable till Nov’2024. Thereby, reaching a cumulative total of approx. 66588 RKms of IR network. Also 801 RKMs of Quad have been provided till Nov’24, with a cumulative total of approx 66271 RKms of IR network.

7. Provision of Wi-Fi facility at Railway Stations: Wi-Fi facility has been provided at 6112 stations so far.

8. Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) at Railway Stations: Indian Railways have approved works for provision of CCTV Cameras at all stations except halt stations. So far, CCTV Cameras have been installed at total 1051 stations.

Key Renewable Energy Milestones

• Indian Railways has set a target of becoming a Net Zero Carbon Emitter by 2030.
• As of November 2024, approximately 487 MW of solar plants (both rooftop and ground-mounted) and about 103 MW of wind power plants have been commissioned.
• Additionally, 100 MW of Renewable Energy – Round the Clock (RE-RTC) has also started flowing.
• Approximately 2014 MW of renewable capacity has been tied up.

Dedicated Freight Corridor Projects (EDFC & WDFC) (PROGRESS SO FAR)

Trains run (October 2024)

Train services: Indian Railways – adapting to passenger demand

Vande Bharat:

• As on 26th December, 2024, a total of 136 Vande Bharat train services are running across the Indian Railways network.
• During the Calendar year-2024, Indian Railways introduced 62 Vande Bharat services.

Namo Bharat Rapid Rail:

• The first Namo Bharat Rapid Rail between Ahmedabad and Bhuj has been introduced on 17th September, 2024.

Amrit Bharat services:

• Amrit Bharat services, which are fully non-AC trains, presently comprising 12 Sleeper Class Coaches and 8 General Class coaches, are providing high quality services to the passengers.
• During the calendar year-2024, 4 Amrit Bharat Express services Darbhanga–Anand Vihar(T) Express and Malda Town – SMVT Bengaluru Express, have been introduced and more are being planned for further introduction.

Special train services:

• Indian Railway operated a record number of special train services during the year 2024.
• To cater to Holi and Summer rush, a total of 13,523 trips of special trains were operated in comparison to 6,896 during the previous year.
• During Pooja/Deepawali/Chhath, 7990 trips of Special trains have also been operated between the period 1st October, 2024 and 30th November, 2024.

Bharat Gaurav  Tourist Trains:

Bharat Gaurav’ Tourist Trains are theme-based tourist circuit trains that aim to showcase India’s rich cultural heritage and magnificent historical places.

Bullet Train Project

• Over 243 km of viaduct construction has been completed under the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project, along with 352 km of pier work and 362 km of pier foundation work.
• Bridges have been constructed across 13 rivers, and multiple railway lines and highways have been crossed through five steel bridges and two PSC bridges.
• Track construction in Gujarat is progressing rapidly, with RC (Reinforced Concrete) Track Bed construction underway in Anand, Vadodara, Surat, and Navsari districts. 71 track km of RC track bed construction has been completed, and welding of rails has commenced on the viaduct.
• In Maharashtra, the first concrete base-slab for the Mumbai Bullet Train Station has been successfully cast at a depth of 32 metres, equivalent to a 10-storey building. Work on the 21 km tunnel between Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and Shilphata is underway, with an Intermediate Tunnel (ADIT) of 394 metres completed to facilitate main tunnel construction.
• Construction of seven mountain tunnels using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM) is progressing in Palghar district. The only mountain tunnel in Gujarat has already been successfully completed.
• The 12 stations along the corridor, designed with thematic elements and energy-efficient features, are under rapid construction. These user-friendly and energy-positive stations are designed to provide a world-class passenger experience while prioritizing sustainability.

Augmentation of trains:

• For the passengers using General and non-AC Sleeper Coaches, the extant policy regarding composition of Mail/Express trains, provide for 12 (Twelve) General class & Sleeper class non- AC coaches and 08 (eight) AC-Coaches, in a train of 22 coaches.
• For passengers travelling in unreserved coaches, more than 950 General Class coaches have been attached, in the Mail/Express trains operating with LHB (Linke Hofmann Busch) coaches, during 2024.
• More than 875 coaches have been utilized for augmentation of train services on a permanent basis.

Operation of more trains with modern LHB coaches:

• The Production units of Indian Railways are producing only LHB coaches from April-2018 onwards and trains operated with ICF coaches are being converted so as to run with LHB coaches.
• During 2014(till November-2024), more than 75 pairs of trains have been so converted.

Record freight loading

• During the January-24 to November-24 period, the revenue earning freight loading on Indian Railways has been 1473.05 MT, recording a growth of 3.86% over the corresponding period of last year.

Rail Network Under Kavach

• Based on deployment of Kavach version 3.2 on 1465 RKm on South Central Railway, a lot of experience was gained. Using that further improvements were made. Finally, Kavach specification version 4.0 was approved by RDSO on 16.07.2024.

The present status of Automatic Train Protection System (Kavach) implementation over IR is as follow:

Kavach is an indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system. Kavach is a highly technology intensive system, which requires safety certification of the highest order  (SIL-4).

Implementation of Kavach System involves following Key Activities:

• Installation of Station Kavach at each and every station, block section.
• Installation of RFID Tags throughout the track length.
• Installation of telecom Towers throughout the section.
• Laying of Optical Fibre Cable along the track.
• Provision of Loco Kavach on each and every Locomotive running on Indian Railways.

Next phase of Kavach implementation is planned as under:-

• Project for equipping 10,000 Locomotives has been finalized. 69 numbers of loco sheds have been prepared for equipping with Kavach.
• Bids for track side Works of Kavach for approximately 15000 RKm have been invited. It covers all GQ, GD, HDN and Identified sections of Indian Railways.
• 3 OEMs are approved for supply of Kavach System. Trials and approval of more OEMs are at different stages.
• By now more than 9000 technicians, operators and engineers have been trained on Kavach technology. Courses have been designed in collaboration with IRISET.

Digital initiatives – bringing convenience in passengers’ hands

• E-ticketing has touched 86% in reserved sector. E-Ticketing in the unreserved sector has gone up from 28% at the beginning of current financial year to around 33% in October 2024.
• Indian Railways has also transformed refund process enabling refunds in eligible cases within 24 hours in around 98% of cases.
• Dynamic QR code based payment has been enabled across all the counters on Indian Railways. This facility is also being proliferated across the parcel offices and all parcel offices would be covered by the end of current financial year.

Digital India Initiative – Human Resource Management System (HRMS)

• Community based Reservation Rosters for Promotional categories: Provision for online Roster generation with appropriate validations, vacancy assessments, and 5-level verification with DSC signatures.
• Generation of e-service records of all employees: Made comprehensive to track complete movement of employee, linked with office orders to auto update entries in e-SR.
• Manpower Planning: A comprehensive database for every one of the 1.45 million posts and provision for creation of Revenue Posts, Redistribution of posts outside Primary Unit, Surrender of posts etc.
• Revamped transfer module covering all inter-railway and inter-divisional transfer request applications, administrative transfers, etc. from application till up to the joining reports in new units.
• Duty Pass:  Duty pass module has been launched on pilot basis across Pan India from November 2024 onwards.
• Good Work portal: Provision for employees to submit the good work done by them in HRMS which is to be pushed to Good Work portal.

Indian Railways’ Contribution to Skill India Initiative

• Under ‘Mission Karmayogi’, the National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB), the Ministry of Railways (MoR) has made notable advancements in 2024. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) on the iGOT platform highlight the following achievements: