BENGALURU: Indian Railways is far ahead than any other country in terms of electrification of its vast rail network and very soon the country will achieve 100% electrification of the rail network, Sudhanshu Mani, innovator of Vande Bharat and former General Manager, Integral Coach Factory, Perambur, Chennai, has said.
Speaking at the one-day ‘BCIC Leadership Conclave 2023’ with the theme ‘India - Its Leadership and the shift underway’ held here on Wednesday, Mani said Indian Railways is at a springboard for quantum growth now. “It is nearly eight times cleaner and greener than road and air transport. This has been possible only through effective leadership and vision,” he added.
Mani touched upon what needs to be done in Railways and said, “While the government recognises the potential of the Railways in India’s growth and has boosted investment from Rs 50,000 crore to Rs. 2.6 lakh crore, Railways currently hold only 27 % share in logistics. This needs to be a core focus area and efforts need to be concentrated on bringing down logistics cost to GDP.”
“Along with our aim to become a developed country by 2047, more attention has to be given on how we transport common Indians. Vande Bharath and bullet trains are signs of progress. It is also projected that by 2047, 50 more Indian cities will have metro rail services.” Mani added.
Talking about the manufacturing potential of India, Kamal Bali, President and Managing Director, Volvo India Group said, “Manufacturing currently is around 15% of India’s GDP and despite concerted efforts from various governments the needle has not moved for the last 25 years. There is currently an opportunity to triple the manufacturing sector from the current USD 400 billion to USD 1.2 trillion”.
For India’s economy to progress it is important that the contribution of manufacturing increases, he said. “We cannot become an economic world power in one sector alone. We need contributions from manufacturing, services, and agriculture to progress and compete on a global scale. Three pillars, if addressed correctly, will boost manufacturing in the country,” Bali added.
SPEED TRIAL ON KSR-JOLARPETTAI SECTION
BENGALURU: Speed trials will be carried out on Thursday on the electrified double line section between KSR Bengaluru and Jolarpettai with trains to be run at 143kmph. An official release said the oscillating monitory system speed trial will be done here to facilitate increasing the speed of trains from 110kmph to 130kmph. “The inspection train will run at a speed of 143kmph on the electrified double line. Public is advised to be cautious,” stated an official press release.