Times Of India reported that at a time when the world has reached a speed of 330 kilometres per hour on rail, the best that India could achieve has been a little over 130 kilometres per hour. But it is high time that we too sped up, feels the Indian Railways and with this intent, it has entrusted IIT Kharagpur with the responsibility of providing the technological knowhow. The research is to happen at the newly opened Railway Research Centre of IIT Kharagpur and work has already started. The goal is to immediately increase the maximum attainable speed to 200 kilometres per hour.

Experts who have workd in the railway board are however askance. They feel that over the past two decades the focus of the railways has been to keep the fare low, even if it is at the cost of not improving the infrastructure or spending to augment safety of rail travel. To introduce high speed trains the centre will have to re lay tracks at a cost of INR 100 crores per kilometer, which is a mammoth expenditure that the railways are not prepared for.

The project that IIT Kharagpur has received is four pronged and is aimed at improving not only the speed but the general efficiency of moving trains, keeping the present infrastructure in mind. A total of three years time has been allotted to the centre within which time it should come up with solutions to the specific problems that have been earmarked by the Railway Board, the apex administrative body of the Indian Railways.

Four broad areas have been identified as "immediate needs" by the railways improving speed, imrpoving carrying capacity (heavy haul), use of advanced material, advanced signalling and maintenance for better safety. A total of eight IIT Kgp departments have started work in tandem for this.

Mr Siddhartha Mukherjee a senior faculty member who heads the centre and is leading the research said that "Speed is a priority for the railways at the moment. However, as things stand now, it is not possible to haul it up from the existing 130 kilometres per hour to the desired 330 kilometres per hour. Countries that have been able to achieve this use a completely different rail technology. So we have decided to do it in stages. We will first provide the technical support that will help to increase the speed to 200 kilometres per hour.”

Source - Times Of India

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