Indian Railways goes environment-friendly

Indian Railways is looking to adopt environment-friendly measures as much as possible! Now, in a bid to use natural gas in workshops, production units and depots, Piyush Goyal-led Indian Railways recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with state gas utility GAIL. The aim of Indian Railways is to replace industrial gases such as dissolved acetylene, LPG and furnace oil/high-speed diesel (HSD) with eco-friendly natural gas. Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani announced that in the first phase of the project, almost 23 workshops will use natural gas by December 31. By June 30 next year, it will be expanded to all 54 workshops, production units and railway establishments including base-kitchens, hostels and guest houses.

The Chairman claimed that the use of natural gas can replace fuel worth Rs 70 crore per annum. He also informed that by September 30, GAIL along with the Indian Railways Organization for Alternate Fuel (IROAF) would come up with a project report.

At Matunga and Kota in Rajasthan, a pilot project has been commissioned and supply of natural gas has commenced. Instead of dissolved acetylene and LPG, the Carriage Repair Work Shop at Matunga has started using CNG. This move can result in yearly savings of Rs 20 lakh. Similarly, in Kota Workshop of West Central Railway, the use of natural gas can result in yearly savings of Rs 21 lakh.

Lohani also stated that the use of natural gas at the Rail Wheel Factory in Bengaluru has led to a saving of 410 kilolitres of HSD per month, saving nearly Rs 8 to 10 crores and reducing CO2 emissions by around 28%. He further added that in around 1,100 houses, located at a railway colony in Bhubaneswar, domestic piped natural gas has been provided.