Setting up of new passenger railway coach factories in India: Why Kalahandi is not considered?

Setting up of new passenger coach factories
PIB, July 10, 2009

To take care of the increasing requirement of passenger coaches in the country and the substantial gap between production and requirement, work for setting up a New Coach Factory is in progress at Rae Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, Estimated to cost Rs. 1685 crore, it shall have a capacity to manufacture 1000 coaches per annum. In the Budget speech of 2008-09, the Minister announced the setting up a new Rail Coach Factory at Palghat, Kerala. Government of Kerala has promised to make 1000 acres of land available free of cost for this project. Estimated to cost Rs. 1215 crore, this factory shall manufacture 600 coaches per year. Requisite approval for this project is under process.

In the Budget speech of 2009-10, the Minister has announced setting up of a new coach factory in state-of-the-art facility to manufacture about 500 EMU/MEMU and Metro coaches per annum in Kancharapara-Halisahar Railway Complex where Railway land is available. This unit will be set up in joint venture/public private partnership. Details of the project are being worked out.

The codal life of a passenger coach is 25 years. A Mid-life rehabilitation is undertaken after 12 – 15 years of usage so that coaches can be kept in good service condition till the end of codal life.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Ministry of Railways, Shri E. Ahamed in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.

NOTE:
Kerala (E. Ahamed, former Railway state minister)
UP (due (Sonia Gandhi, Congress chief)
Bihar (Lalu Yadav, former Railway minister)
WB (current Railway minister)