Indian Railways hits 1 bt freight milestone as reforms boost 2025-26 cargo growth

Indian Railways has crossed the 1-billion-tonne (bt) freight loading milestone in 2025-26. As of November 19, cumulative loading stood at 1,020 million tonnes (mt), supported by higher daily throughput of around 4.4 mt, up from 4.2 mt a year earlier, the ministry said on Saturday.

Coal remained the largest contributor at 505 mt, followed by iron ore (115 mt), cement (92 mt), containers (59 mt), steel (47 mt), fertilisers (42 mt), mineral oil (32 mt), foodgrains (30 mt) and raw materials for steel plants (20 mt). Other commodities accounted for 74 mt.