Current Affairs- 28 APRIL 23
Not by ‘Vande Bharat’ alone (PG 8)(GS 3)
Current Affairs- 28 APRIL 23
•This article will look at two areas (one each on the freight and the passenger fronts). The National Rail Plan 2030 (NRP) envisages raising the rail share in freight traffic visàvis roadways from 27% to 45% by 2050 and the raising of the average speed of rates for freight by up to 30%. It may be mentioned that the rail share of freight carried reduced from 51.5.% in 200809 to 32.4% in 201819 fgoods trains to 50 kilometres per hour from the present 25 kmph and concurrent reduction in tariffor leads over 300 km. Further, almost the entire increase in volume of traffic carried by rail over the decade 200809 to 201819 has been in short lead traffic (leads up to 300 km) and 55% of the increase was through the transport of just one commodity, viz. coal. As yet, there is no evidence of higher levels of traffic being achieved concurrently with diversification of commodities carried or an increase in rail share visàvis road transport. In other words, in the race towards achieving the targets set in NRP 2030, the Indian Railways is at or near the starting bloc