East Coast Railway (ECoR), a major coal loading zonal railway, handled 60.4 million tonnes (mt) of coal in 2010-11, up from 58.1 mt in 2009-10 and the incremental traffic was largely imported coal, according to ECoR sources. “The picture may not be very different for the Indian Railways as a whole,” the sources observe.

Imported coal throughput was 26.24 mt compared with 24.25 mt in the previous year while the throughput of Talcher coal, used for domestic including coastal movement, was 32 mt (32.8 mt). Some quantities of coke, both domestic and imported, were also handled.

Another interesting feature of ECoR's performance in 2010-11 was the improvement in average lead from 554 km to 567 km. This became possible mainly because of despatches of finished steel items to far off places such as Ghaziabad and New Mumbai. The throughput of finished steel and pig iron increased to 5.4 mt (4.1 mt).

The transportation of iron ore from Bailadila mines (Chhattisgarh) to various steel plants located in the State as well as Nagpur region and coal by the Jindals from Sukinda (Orissa) to Bellary (Karnataka) also contributed to improved lead.

Total volume

In 2010-11, ECoR handled a total volume of 109 mt, up from 104 mt in 2009-10. Compared to the revised target of 108.74 mt set for 2010-11, the increase was marginal. The original target of 113.5 mt was revised downward with the downward revision of the 2010-11 freight traffic target of the Indian Railways as a whole from original 944 mt to 924 mt.

Iron ore throughput at 20.9 mt (20.1mt) posted a modest growth and POL was at 2.5 mt (2.3 mt), finished fertilisers, 6.5 mt (6.1 mt) and containerised traffic, one mt (0.8 mt).

Other cargoes comprising alumina powder, chrome ore and aluminite sands posted a growth of 0.8 mt at 7.9 mt (7.1 mt). Cement, at 1.4 mt (2.1 mt), declined and foodgrains slipped to 1.4 mt (1.5 mt).

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