Double-stack train’s trial run to begin in July

New Delhi: The 15-day trial run for double-stack container train, as a part of the dedicated freight corridor (DFC) project, would begin from the first week of July next month.

'The fortnight long trial run would be conducted between Daitari and Jakhapura in Orissa to establish a new height for the overhead electrical equipment line so that double stack container can run on electrified line,' a senior railway ministry official said.

Double-stack containers are running in China but they are not the standard international containers as they run on a lesser height.

'If this experiment succeeds, India will have a new technology to run double-stack container on flat wagon. This is significant because most of the freight lines in the country are electrified unlike in the US where double track containers run on non-electrified diesel locos,' said the official.

About the proposed height of the overhead electrical equipment between Daitari and Jakhpura, the official said electric wires were likely to be erected at a height of 7.4 metres.

The Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) would conduct the trial run on the 60-km stretch in Orissa.

The final report of the trial run is expected to be submitted by the end of July.

The Rs 28,181-crore DFC project aims to link Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata with high-speed connectivity for exclusive freight movement.

The project consists of 1,483-km Delhi-Mumbai route, also known as the western corridor, and 1,280-km Delhi-Kolkata route, known as the eastern corridor.

While the construction of the western corridor is estimated to cost Rs 16,592 crore, the cost of building the eastern corridor is estimated to cost Rs 11,588 crore.

The railways would run double-stack containers in Delhi-Mumbai corridor.

The majority of funds for the project are likely to come through soft loan options of bilateral and multilateral agencies like the Japan Bank For International Cooperation (JBIC), World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB), said the official. he added that there was potential for public-private partnership for the project because the railways are planning to set up a logistic park along the DFC.

Though the project of this magnitude in the rail sector has never been taken up in the past, the railways are hopeful and determined to make this project a success.