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The increase in freight rate did not drive away cargo from rail to road in the Chennai division of Southern Railway (SR).
There was a 20 per cent increase in freight rate from February end.
In fact, the Chennai division, which contributes nearly half of SR’s earnings in both freight and passenger traffic, saw a record loading of cargo in June alone.
We broke all records in loading in June, said Mr S. Anantharaman, Divisional Railway Manager, Southern Railway.
There was no shift in cargo from rail to road due to the price hike, he told Business Line .
However, during the first quarter of the current financial year, there was a minor setback in cargo loading due to a fire at Mettur Thermal Power Station in May. The division loaded 3.96 million tonnes against the target of 4.44 mt – a 11 per cent deficit. But for the fire at Mettur, we could have loaded more coal from Chennai to Mettur for the plant. We will bounce back from the second quarter due to the bullish trend, he said.
In fact, in June, the division loaded 1.5 mt as against the target of 1.47 mt. The loss of coal loading in Chennai port was offset in Ennore. The division handled 463 rakes, which was the highest ever in the division, beating the previous record of 370 rakes loaded in May, he said.
Similarly, the division handled 107 container rakes in June. This was the highest ever, beating the previous record of 77 rakes in April. The division also saw a record loading of POL and fertiliser, he said.
Earnings increase
Despite the deficit loading in the first quarter, the division saw a 28 per cent increase in freight earnings to Rs 267 crore compared with Rs 209 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. This was mainly due to the freight rate increase, he said.
Overall, including passenger traffic , the division saw a 11 per cent increase in earnings to Rs 611 crore (Rs 552 crore), he said.
The division’s jurisdiction covers Chennai to Gudur in the northern direction; Chennai to Villupuram (South); Chennai to Jolarpet (west) and Chennai to Renigunta (South-Central).
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