The Hindu Business Line : RITES to conduct feasibility study on Rly freight corridor

RITES, the PSU Mini-ratna consulting firm, has been asked to prepare a business plan for the freight corridor and conduct a detailed feasibility report.

RITES had recently submitted a pre-feasibility report to Indian Railways on the dedicated rail freight corridor. The cost of the project is expected to be in the Rs 22,000-crore range as per initial estimates.

"We have asked RITES to conduct the business plan and detailed feasibility study for the freight corridor," said top officials in the Railway Ministry.

The business plan would cover a close study of possible investment, earnings that investors would be required to put in.

Rly board gives nod: Moreover, the Indian Railways' expanded board has given an in-principle approval for the proposal to construct Eastern and Western rail freight corridor.

"The issue is likely to be taken up by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs for approval today," said highly-placed sources in the Railway Ministry.

In its pre-feasibility draft report, RITES had suggested that the two double line rail freight corridors be linked to each other at Dadri in Uttar Pradesh, near the National Capital Region (NCR).

The Western rail corridor would be connecting Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Mumbai and Tughlakabad, Rewari as well as Dadri near the National Capital Region through Gujarat, Rajasthan (Ahmedabad, Palanpur, Vadodara) according to RITES recommendations.

The Eastern corridor has been recommended to connect Ludhiana (the hub of international trade in Punjab) and Sonnagar (Bihar) through Mughal Sarai, Kanpur, Khurja, Meerut, Saharanpur and Ambala.

It had recommended a 25-tonnes axle load as against 20.32 tonnes or 22.5 tonnes (for some stretches), at present. However, it is likely to go up to 30 tonnes eventually. As for traction, it had recommended diesel traction, the Eastern corridor may be electrified to permit easy transference of trains between the existing network and the new corridors.