New Delhi: The Indian Railways plans to fabricate 10,000 non-air-conditioned coaches by fiscal 12 months 2025-26 to handle frequent overcrowding, railway officers mentioned Thursday.
Greater than half of those coaches might be normal seating, a transfer meant to accommodate passengers after a spree of incidents the place these with out reservations occupied reserved AC coaches throughout rush journey, added officers.
“The rolling inventory plan for the following two years was sanctioned Thursday by the railway board…This two-year program will meet 17% of our present non-AC coach stock” an official mentioned, talking on situation of anonymity.
The composition of passenger trains, to make certain, is determined by the route and the service. As an example, some trains could also be completely air-conditioned, some might have solely a handful of non-AC coaches, whereas others might need extra non-AC than AC coaches.
The railways at the moment function about 55,000 non-AC coaches, deployed throughout 11,000 pairs of trains.
“The demand for rail service is dynamic. The coach manufacturing program is predicated on seasonal differences and passenger site visitors progress,” a railway board official mentioned.
The plan consists of manufacturing 3,500 normal seating coaches, 2,060 three-tier sleeper coaches, and 18 coaches for Amrit Bharat trains in every of the following two fiscal years, the official mentioned.
The choice follows rising issues about overcrowding, particularly throughout peak journey months. In April, movies of unreserved passengers occupying AC coaches went viral on social media, prompting political debate.
Union railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had beforehand clarified that practice compositions stay commonplace, with 22 coaches per practice for the reason that introduction of latest LHB (Linke Hofmann Busch) coaches.
Based on railway information, passenger numbers hit a report excessive in April 2024, with 411 million journeys within the first three weeks alone, attributed to summer season holidays, wedding ceremony season, and the final elections.
“There have been 10,168 trains operating per day earlier than the Covid-19 pandemic hit the nation. This elevated to 10,748 final 12 months. At present, now we have round 11,000 trains working day by day,” one of many officers talked about above mentioned.
Shri Prakash, former member (site visitors), railway board mentioned, “Addition of 10,000 non-AC coaches will fill within the hole however it’s unlikely to be sufficient, trying on the demand.”