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A file picture of mechanised coal handling facility at the Paradip port.

Santanu Sanyal

Kolkata, Aug 29 The ports of Visakhapatnam and Paradip have proved to be the source of sustenance for the East Coast Railway (ECoR), at least for the time being.

“For the past couple of months, we have been loading in Visakhapatnam on an average 2,000 wagons a day against 1,500-1,600 previously,” says a spokesman for the East Coast Railway (ECoR) serving the port.

Last month, ECoR did a record loading of imported coal for Steel Authority of India Ltd and the throughput this month, it is hoped, will exceed the programmed 135 rakes as the loading till August 27 has been 119 rakes.

The loading of rakes at Paradip port too, has been good.

“On an average, we are loading about eight rakes of imported coal at Paradip against four to five rakes a day during this time in previous years and on some days, the average daily loading has been as high as 12 rakes,” said the spokesman.

Depending on the situation (i.e., when not many iron ore export rakes would arrive the port), ECoR would move empty rakes into the port to facilitate increased loading.

However, ECoR’s overall freight loading has been a matter of concern.

The coal loading at Talcher mines has been poor – at the most, 20 rakes a day at present against the linkage of 29 rakes, and this is continuing for nearly a month.

The road transportation of coal from the mines to the railheads has dropped due to a variety of reasons such as bad road condition in the mine areas, non-availability of adequate number of trucks and the emergence of new set of customers pushing up the demand for road-borne coal.

The iron ore loading too has been on a low key.

The throughput on the Kirandul-Kottavalasa line is around 10 rakes a day compared with 15-16 in normal situation, thanks to Maoists’ threat, bad weather and the problems at the mines.

The shortfall in loading in Nayagarh-Keonjhar area, caused mainly by inadequate road-bridging, that is, road transportation of ore from the mines to the railheads, is estimated at three to four rakes a day.

“There are sidings where the loading time is as high as eight to 10 hours, in some cases, going up to even 20 hours, as compared to normal two-and-a-half to three hours so much so that even WIS (wagon investment scheme) customers have not been spared,” says the spokesman adding, “no wonder the indents are getting cancelled”.

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