Indian Railways Saves Rs 8000 Crore Due To Electrification Drive; Electrifies 6000+ Kms In 12 Months

With the rapid route electrification, Indian Railways has reduced its diesel fuel bill by over Rs 8000 crore in 2020-21.The highest ever electrification of sections covering 6,015 Route Kilometer (RKM)in a single year during 2020-21.

During 2020-21, a decrease in 1.63 billion litres of diesel consumption is expected to avoid 3.7 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. 

The Railways Has Logged Highest-Ever Electrification During The Pandemic

According to a statement released by the national transporter, the Railways has logged the highest-ever electrification of sections covering 6,015 Route Kilometre (RKM) in a single year during 2020-21. The Railways have taken advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has kept trains off the tracks, to speed up their electrification operation, it said.

“Despite COVID pandemic, It has surpassed the previous highest of 5,276 RKM achieved in 2018-19.”It is a proud moment for Indian Railways for achieving the target of 6000 km plus electrification project completion during tough time 2020-21. Indian Railways is becoming environment friendly and energy secured,” according to a statement from the Ministry of Railways.

According to the statement, it has surpassed the previous high of 5,276 RKM set in 2018-19.

The new broad gauge network of Indian Railways is 63,949 RKM, with 740 RKM of Konkan Railway, for a total of 64,689 RKM, with 45,881 RKM (71%) electrified by March 31, 2021, according to the study.

No Dependence on Fossil Fuel 

As more diesel locomotives are replaced with electric locomotives, railways’ diesel use has decreased from 3.06 billion litres in fiscal 2018-19 to 1.43 billion litres in fiscal 2020-21. Out of the total 63,949 km rail route, railways has electrified 45,581 km as of March 31, 2021.

The fuel bill has been reduced to Rs 10,374 crore in 2020-21 from Rs 19,794 crore in 2018-19 due to lower diesel usage. The national transporter has embarked on a major drive to electrify almost the entire rail network in the country, to reach 100% electrification by December 2023.

Total electrification is expected to reduce the Railways’ dependence on fossil fuel to a great extent, saving forex on diesel import.

With the increased electrification, till now, 201 new substations have been commissioned for traction purpose. Railways’ energy consumption was 2,000 MW in 2019-20, which increased to 3,400 MW with the present level of traffic.

The Railways has planned to fully electrify its tracks by December 2023.