Total electrification will help increase train speed

With the NDA government setting the 2021-22 deadline for 100% electrification of railway network, passengers can look forward to an increase in the speed of trains by 10 to 15%, once the target is met, an senior official from the national transporter said in New Delhi.

"Total electrification will not only increase the speed of trains by 10 to 15 % but also the line capacity by the same amount," Ghanshyam Singh, Member (Traction) Railway Board said.

The national transporter had faced public criticism over slow running trains.

The average speed of express/mail trains in the country is just 54 km per hour while premium trains like Rajdhani and Shatbadhi run at an average speed of 70 km per hour against the target of 130 km per hour.

Traffic congestion, weak infrastructure, design of the trains are some of the reasons cited for not achieving the desired speed.

Of the total 1.2-lakh km of railway network, already 46% is electrified and work is on to electrify another 30%.

The Union Cabinet recently approved the project to complete the electrification of remaining network by 2021-2022.

The railway also laid out the plan to convert diesel locomotives which have run for 18 years (mid-life) into electrical locomotives.

Around 1,000 diesel locomotives to be delivered by General Electric (GE) will be used for "disaster management and strategic needs, he said.

While two such locos have already been converted at the Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW), a production unit of the Indian Railways in Varanasi, another two is in the process of being converted, he said.

After the planned electrification, there would be an estimated reduction in the consumption of high-speed diesel oil by about 2.83 billion litre per annum and a reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission, he said.

Post-electrification of all routes, railways is likely to save Rs 13,510 crore per annum on fuel bill and the same will improve its finances.