Kisan Rail service ferrying 350 tonnes of goods from 94 tonnes it carried on inaugural run: Goyal

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the Kisan Rail service was ferrying 350 tonnes of goods from the 94 tonnes it carried on its inaugural run last month.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said the Kisan Rail service was ferrying 350 tonnes of goods from the 94 tonnes it carried on its inaugural run last month. The rail service, which was announced in the 2020 Union budget, aims at transporting agricultural produce, especially perishable commodities, at cheaper rates, and aid farmers in getting right price for their crops.

The first such service was started on August 7 from Deolali in Maharashtra’s Nashik to Danapur in Bihar. “Barely a month after we started Kisan Rail, the same train which was carrying 94 tonnes goods is now carrying more than 350 tonnes. This means that if the facility is provided, people are going to use the service,” the minister said at an event - RailConnect-- organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).

The second Kisan Rail will begin operations from Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh to Adarsh Nagar in Delhi on September 9. It will be south India’s first Kisan Rail service. Goyal said the national transporter was carrying out studies and identifying routes where trucks were running long distances, adding that on every such route, the railways will add more trains.

“In this, you do not need to book the entire train, but book wagons according to your need. For example, one truck load can go in half a wagon, six truck loads can go in three wagons. We want to provide safe, punctual, efficient and cost-effective solutions for our customers,” he explained. The minister also underlined that the Indian Railways is pacing towards becoming a net zero carbon emitter. He urged the industry leaders to collaborate and partner with the railways to provide cost-effective solutions in logistics sector.

He also stressed that an ‘Aatma-nirbhar railways’ depends on the participation of both, railways and industry. “Indian Railways is rightly referred as the growth engine of the country by the Prime Minister of India. His vision is to make Indian Railways a strong entity which serves customers with modern technology and good service experience while maintaining the romanticism associated with railways. There has been a transformation of railways.

“During COVID phase, Indian Railways utilised the opportunity for removing bottlenecks, maintenance, running Shramik trains, bringing back freight share, reinvigorating processes, making policy changes, engaging with private sector and technology providers, and improving infrastructure,” Goyal added. 

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