Indian Railways Cracks Down On Delays: Goods Train Speeds Triple On Key Northern Routes

The long-standing practice of keeping goods trains waiting for hours on loop lines to allow passenger trains to pass is now a thing of the past on Northern Railway. A new initiative has led to goods trains reaching their destinations on schedule, a change that was clearly visible during the recent Navratri festival when new cars were more readily available in Lucknow and surrounding areas.

This transformation is the result of a new strategy launched by Dr Monika Agnihotri, Principal Chief Operations Manager of Northern Railway, to eliminate costly delays. Under her direction, fixed transit times have been implemented for high-priority services. These include:

- The Gati Vahan Service, which transports automobiles from Farukhnagar, Haryana, to Lucknow.

- The Annapurna trains, which carry food grains from Punjab to eastern and northeastern states.

- Special export trains running from Delhi to various ports.

To ensure efficiency, Principal Chief Commercial Manager Narsingh Das is also personally monitoring the timely loading and unloading of these trains.

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Dramatic Increase In Speed And Efficiency

The results of this new focus have been significant. The average speed of the Annapurna goods trains, which run on a priority basis, has nearly tripled, increasing from 20-22 km per hour to an impressive 58-60 km per hour.

Similarly, the Gati Vahan Service now completes its 560 km journey from Farukhnagar to Lucknow's Transport Nagar in just 28-30 hours, a massive reduction from the previous 60 hours. In the Lucknow division, a dedicated team is working to ensure these automobile rakes—each carrying 125 cars—are unloaded without delay. The terminal currently receives between 10 and 12 of these high-priority rakes every month, ensuring a steady supply of new vehicles to the region.

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