The forum discusses
cutting-edge innovations and pathways to implement the National Rail Plan 2030
The Indian Chamber of
Commerce (ICC) today hosted the 2nd Rail India Forum titled Railways in Motion:
Vision 2030 to Viksit Bharat 2047 in New Delhi. The Vice Chancellor, Gati
Shakti Vishwavidyalaya (A Central University under the Ministry of Railways),
Government of India (GoI), Prof (Dr) Manoj Choudhary graced the occasion as the
chief guest. The forum brought together prominent policymakers, industry
leaders, and technology experts such as the Joint Secretary, Ministry of
Commerce and Industry, GoI, Dr (Mr) Surendra Kumar Ahirwar; President of ICC
and MD of Jindal Stainless, Mr Abhyuday Jindal; Chairman, National Railway
Committee ICC & Director, Jupiter Wagons, Mr Vikash Lohia, and several
other key stakeholders who shared their perspectives on building a modern,
sustainable, and efficient railway ecosystem.
While delivering the
welcome address, President of ICC and MD
of Jindal Stainless, Mr Abhyuday Jindal, said, “I am happy to learn that
today, the Indian Railways generates a revenue of ₹2.56 lakh crores, as of
FY24. It manages the world’s fourth-largest railway network with over 132,000
kilometres of track and employs 1.2 million people, making it India’s
second-largest employer. As India accelerates towards becoming a USD 40
trillion economy by 2047, the manufacturing industry, trade, and transportation
of essential materials are slated to grow exponentially. More industrial zones
will be established, and new manufacturing sites will need to be linked.
Additionally, the government’s push to increase the share of rail transport in
freight movement will support this effort.”
Speaking on current trends
and future outlook of the railway industry, Vice Chancellor, Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya, GoI, Prof (Dr) Manoj
Choudhary said, “Railways’ modernisation shall not merely happen only
because of what we are going to lay down, in terms of physical infrastructure,
but a lot more growth will happen because of new knowledge. One of the primary
things behind Viksit Bharat is that our development has to be inclusive in
nature. There are two aspects to it - passenger travel and freight. The
important part is that for passenger travel to become more convenient,
affordable, accessible, available, there are lot of things that are happening -
introduction of newer trains, like Vande Bharat, more than 100 are already
done, conversion of our bogeys of the normal category to the Vande Bharat
standards, and redevelopment of our stations. The second part is related to
freight traffic. It is also important because it drives economic growth – both
the domestic prices are in control and export competitiveness of the country is
also taken care of. However, even today, there is a significant potential for
us to leverage modern technology and adopt that to move ahead. Today also, our
tracks are bearing an excel load which is far from what can be. In the world
over, there are always possibilities and examples existing, possibly most
likely being in the Western Australia and other areas where you see the track
lengths of carrying load of 45 tonnes and currently, we are far away from that.
So there is a possibility of doing that”.
Joint
Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, Dr (Mr)
Surendra Kumar Ahirwar said, “India is a pool of talented people.
The thing which is not happening is the connect between the knowledge which we
are creating and the need of the knowledge of the industry. But as far as we
understand and basis that understanding, we have the initiatives launched,
including the PM Gati Shakti Kaushal Vikas Yojana, or opening of such
universities, like Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya (GSV), or introduction of 105
courses on supply chain logistics transportation in universities of India. The
knowledge which we need today is a new knowledge, which will emerge out of or
be an outcome of the research and development. The researches are not happening
probably, or research which are happening, they are not relevant to the
problems which we are facing in the society or the industry or the economy. So
there has to be a change of narrative probably, and for that, I think GSV-like
institutions can play a leading role, where I want to say that research should
be for developments. So let's replace research and development with research
for development.”
The forum explored
strategies to enhance the passenger experience while prioritising safety and
sustainability. It concluded with a commitment from industry stakeholders to
collaborate towards making Indian Railways a benchmark in global rail systems.
