PM Modi to launch Dedicated Freight Corridor

PM Modi to launch Dedicated Freight Corridor

Subject: Economy

Context: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually inaugurate the largest section of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor at midday on December 29 to launch the operations of one of the largest rail infrastructure projects in India.

Concept:

• The 351-km Khurja-Bhaupur (Kanpur) section of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor is ready and necessary trials and testing have already been concluded.
• Along with the section, the PM will also unveil the state-of-the-art Operation Control Centre of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor, based in Prayagraj.
• The centre, with galleries of multiple screens, will keep track of all train movement in real time on the freight corridor and enable seamless planning of operations.

Dedicated freight corridors (DFC)

• These are freight-only railway lines to move goods between industrial heartlands in the North and ports on the Eastern and Western coasts.
• The dedicated freight-only lines are being built along the four key transportation routes – known as the Golden Quadrilateral and connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Howrah and its two diagonals (Delhi – Chennai and Mumbai – Howrah).
• Covering a total of 10,122 km, these corridors carry the heaviest traffic and are highly congested.
• The route carries 52 per cent of passenger traffic and 58 per cent of freight traffic, according to the Make-in-India report of 2017.