-SATISH HANDA

 Indian Railways has decided to increase the speed of 84 trains to run at 130 kilometres per hour (kph) in order to provide comfortable and fast journey to railway passengers. Commissioner Railway Safety (CRS) has already completed successful trials as regard speed of trains and Railway Ministry has given green signal to start high speed trains on several important routes in the country. Hari Mohan Senior DCM Ambala Division told that high speed train service will be introduced on rail track between Delhi and Ludhiana declared safe after trial to start this service this month and directed DRM Ambala to complete all improvements specified by CRS for which Northern Railway will issue a letter to start high speed trains including Rajdhani, Shatabdi and other Superfast trains running between Delhi and Katra in the first phase where all preparations have been completed.

In the second phase, railways has plans to start 130 kph speed trains on the rail track between Delhi – Chandigarh and Chandigarh – Jalandhar City in Northern Railways, besides proposal for high speed trains on other routes to include 2164 km route between Nizamuddin (New Delhi) to Chinnai where work on 1965 km rail track has already been completed and work on remaining 764 km rail track is going on war-footing basis. As regard work on rail track between Mumbai to Howrah rail track for high speed trains has already been completed on 1458 km  rail track and work going on remaining 706 km rail track. Similarly, on rail track between Mumbai and Chinnai, work on 1652 km rail track between Howrah 397 km rail track has already been completed, whereas between Mumbai to Chinnai out of total 1276 km rail track work has already been completed on 536 km rail track and railways high command has already given target to complete all high speed train rail tracks under process latest by December 31, 2021. According to Ambala rail division information, new time table for the trains is being prepared likely to be released in the month July this year.

Meanwhile, Ministry of Railways has prepared a list of 68 long route trains in the country discontinued due to KOVID-19 where heavy amount towards revenue up to 123% was earned by the railways prior to epidemic outbreak in the country now to bring back on rail tracks before April 15. According to information, most of these long route trains were carrying extra passengers between100 to 190% more than the sitting capacity travelling in these trains bringing handsome profits to railway department. While talking to Hari Mohan Senior DCM Ambala Division told that there is planning to re-start 68 long route trains with immediate effect on the same number as well as fare charged earlier from passengers travelling in these trains. He said, every care will be taken in the trains to follow directions by the passenger prescribed by health department as regard wearing face mask, keeping distance between passengers in trains for which GRP as well as RPF will keep a strict watch and those violating directions inside train will be heavily fined.

It was a golden time for Indian Railways to earn heavy revenue in long distance trains over crowded with passengers travelling in most of the trains with effect from April 2019 to March 2020 in which nearly 100% extra  passengers were found travelling in the trains recoding earned nearly 123% revenue. Some of the trains  earned handsome margins in this period include Garib Rath Express running between Amritsar and Sehrasa, Garib Rath Express running between Delhi to Muzaffarpur, Superfast Express running between Amritsar to Nanded, Exress Train between Delhi and  Haldia and Sampark Kranti Express running between Chandigarh to Madgaon,

According to railway information, some of the trains scheduled to return on railways tracks include trains running between Jammu Tawi and Kathgodam, Delhi and Bhusawal, Delhi and Raigarh, Jammu Tawi and Barauni, Delhi and Agartala, Delhi and Varansi, Kalka and Katra, Ambala and Barauni, Delhi and Chhindwara, New Delhi and Pandicherri, Delhi and Bhagalpur, Delhi and Gaya, Kalka and Shirdi, Delhi and Secunderabad and on many more other routs in the country.