Rail ministry to transform Indian Railways into 'Green Railways'

With a goal of transforming Indian Railways into 'Green Railways', the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved complete electrification of railway network which will reduce its carbon footprint and improve its finances through the reduction in fuel cost.

With a goal of transforming Indian Railways into 'Green Railways', the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved complete electrification of railway network which will reduce its carbon footprint and improve its finances through the reduction in fuel cost. "As part of its obligations and commitment to reducing carbon footprints, Indian Railways is taking several initiatives in the field of green energy to achieve the same. In line with this, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Ministry of Railways, Government of India and Department for International Development (DFID), the United Kingdom on December 2 for collaboration on energy and sustainability," an official statement said.

Through the Power Sector Reform (PSR) programme, the MoU with DFID envisages to include co-operation for energy efficiency and energy self-sufficiency for Indian Railways. The MoU will broadly cover energy planning for Indian Railways in line with government's policies and regulations as applicable from time to time including 100 per cent greener sources of electricity supply through renewable energy planning and deployment, offshore wind and solar energy, and energy storage and new energy technologies, the statement said.

Off-grid renewable energy services, promoting energy sustainability initiatives like adopting energy efficiency practices, enabling fuel efficiency, electric vehicle charging infrastructure deployment, battery-operated shunting locomotives and capacity development like training programmes, industrial visits, and field visits will also be covered in the MoU. (ANI)

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