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Indian Railways to auction dedicated freight corridors also to private players: Report

Private freight trains are likely to be “packaged as an added attraction,” once private passenger trains are already underway

Indian Railways (IR) is planning to run private freight trains along dedicated corridors. This comes as the Railways is geared up for private passenger trains, a process which was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Encouraged by the enthusiastic response to private passenger trains, the Railways is looking at private freight trains as well. For this, it is fast-tracking auctioning of routes in under-completion dedicated freight corridors (DFCs) to private players, as per The Economic Times report.

The aim is to begin privatising freight trains when the first batch of private passenger trains begin operation in 2023.

Currently, among freight trains, only private container trains have been allowed to operate in India in limited capacity since 2006.

Private freight trains are likely to be “packaged as an added attraction”, once private passenger trains are already underway, giving early movers the advantage on grabbing lucrative routes, the report said.

Confirming the development, Chairman, Railway Board V K Yadav said, “as per the report that private operators will be brought in once DFCs are ready. Deadline for completion of DFCs is June 2022”.

“A railway regulator will be created before the rollout of private passenger trains in 2023… private freight operators will invest in wagons and containers. So, the regulator will have two mandates — regulating passenger trains and freight trains,” Yadav added.

On the routes likely to be auctioned to private players, MD/DFCCIL Anurag Sachan said they would engage first in the 650 km stretch between Palanpur (Gujarat) and Rewari (Haryana). This stretch will be operational this fiscal, he added.

Source: Moneycontrol News