The Hindu Business Line : East Coast Rly freight loading picks up, but may miss target

East Coast Railway’s (ECoR) freight loading is picking up but the authorities are not confident of achieving the targeted 101.8 million tonnes (mt) of originating freight traffic by March. In 2007-08, ECoR handled 93.2 mt of originating freight traffic.

“Cumulatively, we’re up by about three mt till now yet the situation is far from satisfactory”, according to a spokesman for ECoR. “Our daily loading of wagons still falls short of the target”. The target is 4,400 eight-wheeler wagons a day on an average but the present loading is 4,200. In November, the situation was worse, 3,400.

In October, November and December, the three critical months for incremental loading, had been particularly bad. Also, the coal traffic beliedexpectations. With the steel sector reeling under crisis, the steel plants cut down on the coking coal imports. The throughput of finished steel too had been low. The only consolation had been the uninterrupted import of coal for the power sector. On the whole, the throughput of imported coal has so far remained by and large unchanged.

Iron ore movements

Fortunately, the movement of iron ore on the Kirandul-Kottavalasa line has picked up. The situation came to such a pass that the daily movement dropped to virtually zero rake against the normal 15/16 rakes largely due to the drop in both domestic and export demand for ore. The situation now has changed for the better. “We’re now loading about 11 rakes a day catering to Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (Vizag steel plant), exports and sponge iron unit in Chhtattisgarh”, the spokesman said.

The recent freight concession scheme, which initially benefited only the South Eastern Railway for transporting iron ore for exports, was subsequently extended to ECoR.

Limited benefit

However, the benefit under the scheme valid till Wednesday has not been available to those exporting through Paradip port, the distance between the loading points served by ECoR and the port being less than the stipulated 400 km. Yet ECoR has received indents for 30 rakes for iron ore shipments through Paradip port.

The loading of Talcher coal too has picked up from the earlier 20 rakes to 25 rakes a day. But that is no cause for comfort. “We can load up to 30 rakes a day but we’re not sure if the figure can be reached due to various reasons”, the spokesman added.