Construction of Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor Completed
Government Scheme
5 min read
According to the Ministry of railway the Construction of Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor has been fully completed. Whereas 1220 KM out of 1506 KM of Western Dedicated Freight Corridor has been completed and train operations are going on in the completed sections.
The Ministry of Railways has taken up construction of two Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFCs) that are Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) is from Ludhiana to Sonnagar (1337 Km) and Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC) is from Jawaharlal Nehru Port Terminal (JNPT) to Dadri (1506 Km).
The construction of Dedicated Freight Corridors:
- will reduce the logistic cost by including higher axle load trains and Double Stack Container trains(DSC)
- lead to development of Gati Shakti Cargo Terminals and new industrial hubs
- Faster access to Northern hinterland by Western Ports
To ensure timely completion of Dedicated Freight Corridors, the Government has made timely provision of funds and monitored the project land acquisition activities by close coordination with State Governments directly and also in different forums i.e. Project Monitoring Group (PMG) etc.
About Dedicated Freight Corridor
Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) project came to effect in 2005 and subsequently, two Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFCs) - Eastern DFC (EDFC) and Western DFC (WDFC) were approved by the Cabinet in 2008.
The combined length of the two routes is 3,260 kilometers.
Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor:
The Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor is 1337 Km and spans from Ludhiana, Punjab, to Dankuni, West Bengal.
Western Dedicated Freight Corridor
Western Dedicated Freight Corridor is 1506 KM and runs from Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Mumbai, Maharashtra to Dadri in Uttar Pradesh.
Background of DFC
- The Minister for Railways announced the creation of DFCs in the Railway Budget for 2005-06 on the floor of the House in the Parliament.
- The Project was earlier discussed at the Japan-India Summit Meeting in 2005.
- A declaration of cooperation was signed with the Hon'ble Prime Ministers of India and Japan.
- The cooperation was signed for a feasibility study and possible funding by the Japanese Government for the dedicated rail freight corridors.
- The Ministry established a Special Purpose Vehicle responsible for the operation, construction, and maintenance of the dedicated freight corridors.
- As a result Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL) ws established on 30th October 2006, and scheduled as a company under the Company's Act 1956.
- DFCCIL is responsible for the planning & development, construction, operation & maintenance, mobilization of financial resources, and business development of the dedicated freight corridors.
Funding
- The Project cost was financed through equity from the Ministry of Railways, and Public Private Partnership and debt from bilateral/multilateral agencies.
- The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) finished a feasibility study on the Project in October 2007 and later on agreed to fund the WDFC.
- On the request of the Ministry of Railways for the funding of EDFC from the World Bank in 2008 the World Bank approved the funds in 2011 for a 1,183 km section of the EDFC that connects Ludhiana with Mughalsarai.
