Driving Progress Innovation and Expansion in the Indian Railways System

Indian Railways, the fourth-largest national railway system in the world, plays a pivotal role in India's transportation, infrastructure, and economic growth. As of April 2024, this vast system covers 132,310 kilometres of tracks, of which 58,074 kilometres are electrified. It is a lifeline which connects people and goods across the nation. More than 23 million passengers use this railroad system daily, making it the only mode of conveyance for millions of people. Besides, the Indian Railways provide jobs to more than 1.2 million people, standing as the tenth largest employer in the world. The Indian railways system also largely contributes to the GDP by acting as the backbone for sectors like defence, manufacturing and tourism.

The importance of modernisation within Indian Railways cannot be undermined, especially considering the growing demand for efficient transportation solutions to cater to India's expanding population and economy. Recent initiatives include "Make in India", under which indigenous projects such as the Vande Bharat Express have been developed and the fabrication of 800 such trains is on course to be completed by 2030. The Indian Railways is on target with its first hydrogen train scheduled to be called into service by the end of this year, reflecting their commitment toward sustainability and innovation. New models of funding and public-private partnerships are also being considered by the government as ways to attract private investment in high-profile projects, such as the Chenab River Railway Bridge, which is expected to be the highest single-arch railway bridge in the world. These changes signify strong intent by Indian Railways to keep the wheels of progress oiled through technological advancements and the expansion of infrastructure, contributing to national growth.

Innovations in the Indian Railways System

To enhance passenger experience, the Indian Railways is rolling out innovative services that emphasise comfort and convenience. For instance, the food-on-demand feature allows passengers to request meals directly to their seats via a mobile application, ensuring a customised dining experience. The "Doctor on Call" service is another significant addition, providing travellers with access to medical help when needed, with trained personnel available to manage health issues during their trip. Furthermore, paperless ticketing has made the boarding process efficient, enabling passengers to use digital tickets on their devices, reducing the dependency on physical tickets while supporting the green initiatives. These initiatives enrich the travel experience and highlight Indian Railways' commitment to evolving its services to meet customer expectations.

• Integration of technology

The Indian Railways is at the forefront of integrating advanced technology into its operations, enhancing efficiency and customer experience. Artificial Intelligence (AI), IoT, and automation have already replaced many layers of railway management. AI can predict equipment failure before it happens, thus reducing downtime and enabling smoother operations.

IoT devices deployed over the network observe real-time performance of the trains, track and environmental conditions for data-driven decisions. Digital ticketing platforms revolutionised customer service by proving to be an easy avenue for passengers to book tickets, check schedules and get real-time updates about their journey. Supported by mobile applications, self-service kiosks further fine-tuned the ticketing process by reducing waiting times. These changes improve operational efficiency and enhance the overall travel experience of millions of passengers.

In FY24, the average number of mobile ticket bookings reached 635,000 per day, with the IRCTC mobile app achieving a remarkable 12.20 crore downloads and daily logins totalling 5.17 million. Over this period, more than 23.22 million tickets were booked through the mobile app, compared to 20.42 million tickets in FY23. The IRCTC Rail Connect Mobile App is one of the highest-rated mobile applications in India on the Google Play Store.

Source - IRCTC annual report

• High-speed rail projects

High-speed rail projects constitute a giant leap toward modernisation in India's emergent transportation and rail network landscape. The introduction of the Vande Bharat Express trains exemplifies this commitment, with Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi flagging off six new trains on September 15, 2024, extending the fleet from 54 train sets to 60, enabling 120 daily trips. The project aims to cross over 280 districts across 24 states and union territories.

New additions to their routes include Tatanagar-Patna, Brahmapur-Tatanagar, Rourkela-Howrah, Deoghar-Varanasi, Bhagalpur-Howrah, and Gaya-Howrah. This is proof of the railway's effort to improve accessibility across regions. These trains offer more than just speed; they are equipped with advanced safety features, including the Kavach system, which enhances train control to prevent accidents. The Vande Bharat 2.0 model features innovative onboard amenities such as antiviral technology, Wi-Fi, 32-inch LCD TVs, Maximum speed of 180 km/h, and more.

The Vande Bharat trains, as a flagship project for 'Make in India', symbolise India's ambition: a modern, efficient, world-class rail system. Since its first journey on February 15, 2019, the program has become a demonstration of India's capability to deliver the latest in rail technology. It is a further commitment to high-speed rail projects, reflecting the general vision of modern transportation infrastructure responsive to the needs of a rapidly growing economy. Since their introduction, Vande Bharat trains have undertaken approximately 36,000 trips and carried over 3.17 crore passengers as of September 14, 2024, highlighting their popularity and efficiency.

Work is in progress on the development of enhanced rail corridors exclusively meant for high-speed trains and fast movement of freight. These corridors will contribute to economic growth by providing better connectivity and stimulating the local economy. The impact of these projects goes beyond mere speed; they will contribute to the development of regions like Uttar Pradesh and Punjab.

• Safety and security innovation

For the Indian Railways, safety is the priority. Over the years, innovations have reinforced security on the network. Advanced signalling systems were introduced to make train operations less risky. Trains are fitted with monitoring mechanisms to avoid collisions and facilitate safe travel. Meanwhile, drones and monitoring technology have transformed track and station security. Drones are deployed for aerial surveillance, offering real-time monitoring of railway infrastructure and quick identification of issues. This proactive safety ensures all anomalies are dealt with in advance to reduce risk to passengers and operations.

Another major stride is the introduction of the Kavach system, a safety technology certified at Safety Integrity Level 4 at an economical cost.

The Kavach system is designed to prevent train collisions by automatically applying brakes if a driver does not respond promptly to signals. It uses RFID tags along the tracks to monitor train positions and provides important signal information, even in poor visibility. The Indian Railways plans to implement Kavach across 44,000 kilometres of track in the next five years, enhancing safety on major routes like Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah.

Kavach trials have been successfully conducted, and implementation plans are underway for an extensive network of 34,000 kms. Kavach upgrades train control and safety, making rail travel safer.

• Start-up collaborations and innovation policy

The Indian Railways have been engaging with start-ups actively because of their clearly laid down innovation policy, which encourages co-creation and co-innovation. From June 2022 to July 2024, the railways have sanctioned funding of about Rs. 43.87 crore (US$ 5.27 million) to support 23 projects related to service improvement under this policy. These projects include lightweight wagons, a rail stress monitoring system, advanced track inspection techniques, and more. The initiative calls upon startups to provide solutions to real-time problems and work on those ideas for incorporation and better functionality.

For the same, an innovation portal was launched. It engages emerging entrepreneurs by presenting over 423 proposals addressing challenges. This approach fosters innovation among startups and accelerates the integration of creative solutions into the railway system. In summary, the Indian Railways is undergoing a transformative phase characterised by the integration of advanced technology, development of high-speed rail projects and a strong focus on safety.

Infrastructure expansion

The Indian Railways is undergoing significant infrastructure expansion aimed at enhancing connectivity, improving freight efficiency, and modernising existing facilities. Below are the key components of this expansion:

• New railway lines and routes

Indian Railways is focusing on the extension of new railway routes, especially in underdeveloped areas, and is striving for better connectivity along with providing a boost to economic development. This includes laying a new line from Pandurangapuram (Visakhapatnam) to Bhadrachalam (Telangana) to Malkangiri (Odisha) and is being taken up as a high-priority endeavour. The estimated cost of the project is Rs. 7,383 crore (US$ 885 million) for a route length of 290 km. This is part of a higher sanctioning involving eight projects across the country with estimated costs of Rs. 24,657 crore (US$ 2.96 billion). This new line, when materialised, will offer an alternative route between Asansol and Warangal to facilitate quick access to the southern states' thermal power plants and aluminium and iron ore industries. It is expected to increase connectivity to the tribal-dominated districts fostering socio-economic development in the extremism-affected areas.

Furthermore, the expansion incorporates the construction of six new rail lines in Odisha at over Rs. 15,000 crore (US$ 1.80 billion) as part of Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi’s Purvodaya vision. These lines will shorten the travel time between Rayagada, Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj and facilitate the construction of 64 stations to cover 510 villages, benefiting a population of approximately 40 lakhs. The projects will provide vital routes for transporting commodities like agricultural products, coal, iron ore and cement, while improving mobility and service reliability for the Indian Railways. This expansion is expected to massively increase freight-handling capacity and spur economic growth across the region.

Source - Indian railways annual report

• Upgrading existing infrastructure

The Indian railway system is set to undergo a significant upgrade of its existing infrastructure, aiming to enhance passenger experience and operational efficiency. As part of the Budget 2024-25, Union Finance Minister Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman announced that approximately 2,000 mail and express trains would be revamped to meet Vande Bharat standards, which includes upgrading 40,000 existing bogies with improved acceleration, deceleration, braking systems and other essential components. This initiative will enhance passenger amenities, with improvements to interiors, toilets, couplers, CCTV systems, and berths, elevating the overall travel experience.

In addition to upgrading existing trains, the Indian Railways plans to introduce sleeper facilities for Vande Bharat trains, with the first prototype expected to be ready soon. The goal is to expand the fleet to 75 Vande Bharat trains with seating facilities and 500 with sleeper facilities over the next four years (2024-2028). To fund these upgrades, the Indian Railways has committed to investing Rs. 7 lakh crore (US$ 83.91 billion) over the next decade to lay 50,000 kilometres of new tracks. This initiative is part of the Vision 2047 document, which aims to modernise the network and accommodate high-speed trains like Vande Bharat. The target is to maintain a pace of laying 5,200 kilometres of new tracks annually, focusing on replacing old tracks to ensure a robust infrastructure capable of supporting modern high-speed transportation systems.

Financially, the Indian Railways expects continued support from the central government, with a gross budgetary support (GBS) of Rs. 2,40,200 crore (US$ 29.79 billion) allocated for 2023-24. This support is crucial for financing the capital expenditure aimed at expanding and upgrading the railway network. All new lines are be designed to accommodate high- and semi-high-speed trains, ensuring the infrastructure can manage speeds of up to 180 km/h, in line with the capabilities of the Vande Bharat trains. These initiatives reflect a commitment to modernise and enhance the efficiency of the rail transport system, improving passenger safety, comfort, and operational efficiency.

• Logistics and freight

In a strategic move to elevate its freight capabilities, the railways plan to increase freight traffic from 1.2 billion tonnes in 2019 to 3.3 billion tonnes by 2030. This ambitious goal will be supported by the introduction of Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFCs), designed to optimise cargo transport efficiency and bolster the overall logistics framework. In support, the Indian Railways awarded a contract for the supply of 4,000 BOXNS wagons, valued at Rs. 1,617 crore (US$ 193 billion), aimed at improving freight capacity. BOXNS wagons feature an axle load capacity of 25 tonnes as compared to 22.9 tonnes in BOBRN wagons, and a load capacity of 81.25 tonnes as compared to 80.00 tonnes, enhancing the freight capacity of the existing fleet. This advancement marks a significant step in Indian Railways' strategy to elevate its freight traffic share from 27% to 45% by 2030.

In addition to expanding wagon capacity, the railways is also implementing initiatives to improve cargo transport efficiency. This includes the introduction of the Gati Shakti Multi-Modal Cargo Terminal (GCT) policy, which encourages investment in additional terminals for handling rail cargo. The policy allows for the construction of terminals on railway and non-railway land, facilitating better aggregation and dispersal of cargo. The Railways also relaxed block rake movement rules, permitted mini rakes, and introduced private freight terminals (PFTs) to enhance flexibility and accessibility for customers. By fostering partnerships with freight operators and encouraging private wagon investment, the Indian Railways is streamlining operations, increasing its share in the bulk cargo market, addressing infrastructural challenges and ensuring sustainable growth in the freight sector.

Source - Indian railways annual report

Outlook

As the Indian Railways sets its sights on the ambitious Vision 2030, significant strides are made toward high-speed rail expansion and the complete electrification of its network. The government aims to operationalise 4,500 Vande Bharat trains by 2047, with plans for the introduction of 50 Amrit Bharat trains in the 2024-25 fiscal year to enhance passenger experiences. The National High-Speed Rail Corridor Limited's bullet train project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad exemplifies this commitment, with increased funding to ensure its timely completion. The electrification initiative, currently at 93.83%, aims for 100% electrification, drastically reducing the reliance on fossil fuels and positioning Indian Railways as a leader in sustainable transportation. These efforts are underpinned by advanced technology, including AI-driven automation for predictive maintenance and the integration of smart rail systems, which will enhance operational efficiency.

In conclusion, the Indian Railways stands as a symbol of national growth and resilience, with its modernisation efforts significantly impacting India's global standing. The integration of cutting-edge technology, expansion of high-speed rail services and a strong commitment to sustainability through electrification and solar energy initiatives reflect a transformative phase for the railway system. As the backbone of India's economy, the railways facilitate connectivity across vast regions and stimulate local economies and job creation. With a focus on continuous innovation and infrastructure development, Indian Railways is poised to redefine the future of transport in India, ensuring it remains a vital component of the nation's growth story for decades to come.