The Hindu Business Line : Lighter wagons for Rlys soon

With the aim of increasing the volume of freight that each wagon carries, the Indian Railways plans to soon place its first order for stainless steel wagons, which are lighter and have a higher payload to tare weight ratio.

The wagons will have a payload to tare weight ratio of about 3.4 compared to the wagons in use now, which have a ratio of about 2.7.

The total loaded wagon weight includes the weight of freight (payload) and the empty wagon weight (tare weight). Thus, for any goods train, given the axle load constraints, higher payload and lower tare weight increases its earning potential.

More freight, earnings

The new wagons will help the Railways carry about 1.8 to two tonnes of extra freight in each wagon. And the total weight each rake can move can go up, depending on the number of wagons attached in a rake. This, in effect, would push up the earnings per rake for the Railways.

These BOXN wagons were designed by the Lucknow-based Railway Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) to achieve a higher throughput per wagon, given the present axle loads, said a senior Ministry official. The stainless steel wagons would minimise corrosion — thus reducing the maintenance cost for the wagons.

Acquisition plans

In the 2007-08 fiscal, the Railways plans to acquire "in the range of 10,000 wagons, just like financial year 2006-07," official sources told Business Line. In 2006-07, the Railways is trying to get physical delivery of 10,200 wagons, which, it expects, would be met by a mix of its outstanding orders and the present order.

In mid-2006, the Railways had finalised its highest ever order for the supply of about 9,000 wagons with the cost per wagon estimated to be about Rs 16-17 lakh, on an average.

Once the higher payload to tare ratio wagons are delivered, the Railways' earnings from each wagon is likely to increase.

As for the rail wagon fleet, in the broad gauge operations of the Indian Railways, an average of 1,95,065 wagons (416,527, in terms of four-wheeler units) were in use in 2004-2005. They include 58,508 covered wagons that can carry an average load of 52.2 tonnes per wagon); 100,755 high-sided open wagons that can carry an average 57 tonnes, and 8,684 low-sided open wagons that can carry an average load of 56.6 tonnes.