The Hindu Business Line : East Coast Rly freight loading short of target

Kolkata, Aug. 6 Freight loading in East Coast Railway (ECoR) has been on a low key for some time. Till July, i.e., the first four months of the current fiscal, the total originating freight loading was 23.15 million tonnes (mt) which, though higher than the volume of 21.83 mt handled in the same period of the previous year, falls short of the target of 24.6 mt set for the period.

The total freight loading target for ECoR for 2008-09 has been set at 100 mt.

Coal is the major item of freight and Talcher, under Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL), is the major coal loading point. However, for the past several days, the average daily loading at Talcher has been around 19 rakes as compared to the normal 27/28. Between July 18 and 28, the loading was allowed only for power houses. As a result, National Aluminium Company was badly hit by coal shortage.

ECoR sources would attribute it to the drop in road movement of coal from the mines to the nearest railheads. “The number of trucks deployed by MCL for road-bridging, it appears, has come down,” observe the sources.

iron ore loads

Another area of concern has been the unsatisfactory iron ore movement on the 450-km long Kirandul-Kottavalasa line. For the past several days, night movement of iron ore rakes on the route has not been possible due to threat by Maoists. Also, the Bacheli iron ore plant of National Mineral Development Corporation, it is reported, has not been functioning to its capacity.

In Sambalpur area in Orissa, the loading of foodgrains by the Food Corporation of India has been hit by the not-so-satisfactory procurement while the maintenance shutdowns of the cement plants have dealt a blow to the movement of raw materials as well as evacuation of finished products out of the plants located in the area.

Fortunately for ECoR, the loading of imported at both Paradip and Visakhapatnam ports has been satisfactory. The loading of iron ore in Daitari-Banspani area too has been good; it could have been even better, it is felt, but for the heavy rain in the area.