Rail Analysis India Dec Edition 2017 Digital Magazine | Page 104

Article | 103
Technological Developments :
Around 1906, the government established the Railway
Investigation Office under the auspices of the government
railways, in order to promote the development of rail
technology for the government railways.
104 | Article
advances in aerodynamics have reduced running noise,
and development of sound barriers has also created a better
trackside environment. Such advances are an excellent
example of how technology can eliminate limits to higher
speeds.
RTRI needed the skill of top technicians & engineers and
many were successfully recruited from former army and
navy laboratories and from private companies.
Some aviation engineers joined JNR and their input help
with development of the Tokaido Shinkansen. It is now
widely recognized that the shinkansen lead advances in
railway technology worldwide, especially in Europe.
Significant Acihevements of the Industry :
Safety : As far as safety is concerned, the Japanese
railways have achieved a sophisticated level by developing
ways to prevent accidents. It is also working closely with
the Japan Meteorological Agency to develop new systems
that can prevent train mishaps during an earthquake, since
Japan is an earthquake-prone country.
Higher Speed : Speed is influenced by many factors, such
as running efficiency, adhesion, power-weight ratio, running
resistance, noise and vibration limits, maintenance, & cost-
performance. Engineers have developed new approaches
to overcoming these technical factors & making higher
speeds possible.
The rolling stock has become lighter, over the years
and at the same time drive mechanisms have become
more powerful. In Japan, noise is said to be the greatest
impediment to raising maximum commercial speeds but
India is Building its First Bullet Train Project
with Japanese Assistance : MAHSR Project
Indian Railways, with help from Japan government, is now
set to begin work to set up a 500-km route for high-speed
trains between Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
Railways Minister Piyush Goyal has indicated that the bullet
train project will be completed by August 15, 2022, when
India completes the 75 years of its independence, one year
before the official deadline of December 2023.
Japan has offered to lend India a soft loan of Rs 88,000
crore at an interest of 0.1 per cent. The loan will have to
be paid in the course of 50 years, with a moratorium of 15
years .
Work On First Phase Of 1,856 km Long
Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor To
Be Completed By August 2018
The work on the first phase of the 1,856 km long Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor that runs through
6 states will be completed by August 2018, officials said. “The first phase of the work on the Eastern
Dedicated Freight Corridor will be completed by August 2018,” Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation
(DFCC) Managing Director Anshuman Sharma said, during a visit to Aligarh to view the progress of the
work on the 345km stretch of the corridor between Kanpur & Khurja.
About The Project:
• 300 km of track work has been completed on the
stretch, he said
• Thereafter, work on the Kanpur-Mughalsarai 402
km second phase will be completed by December
2019, he added.
•
Image Credit: abc.net.au
The corridor, being laid at a cost of Rs 30,358 crore
(around $5 billion) & scheduled for completion
by 2020, will eventually run from Ludhiana in
Punjab and, after passing through Haryana, will
be joined by a spur from Dadri in Uttar Pradesh
— the closest point to national capital New Delhi
— before proceeding through Bihar and Jharkhand
and terminating at Dankui in West Bengal.
•
Also, earthwork is under way on the Ludhiana-
Khurja section to first flatten the ground and then
compact it before the rails are laid.