Railways to invest Rs 18,000 cr to upgrade depots for Vande Bharat trains

The railways estimates that it will cost Rs 312 crore per depot to upgrade the maintenance depots

To overcome the lack of adequate maintenance depots, the railways has firmed up a plan to invest Rs 18,000 crore to upgrade its locomotive maintenance facilities for the semi-high speed Vande Bharat trains, The Economic Times reported on Tuesday.

The potential rollout of the investment plan has raised hopes that more Vande Bharat trains will soon be run in more parts of the country.

"The depot upgrade works will be carried out across the country to ensure that the Vande Bharat trains that are planned for introduction over the coming months can be maintained appropriately,” a senior railway ministry official told ET on condition of anonymity.

The railways estimates that it will cost Rs 312 crore to upgrade a depot..

 
Currently, 7 Vande Bharat Express trains are being run. The latest such train was flagged on December 30 between Howrah and New Jalpaiguri. The government has plans to introduce 75 Vande Bharat trains by August 2023.

 
In order to maintain the rising number of these trains, the railways would need to scale up its maintenance depots and turn them into dedicated facilities. There are currently 58 maintenance depots that can hold 100 Vande Bharat trains, according to the Railway Board. The government plans to run a total of  475 Vande Bharat trains, according to the ET report.

 
“To ensure high reliability and availability of train sets, necessary maintenance infrastructure has to be planned and developed simultaneously,” said a note from the Research Design and Standards Organisation, a railways arm that functions as a technical adviser.

The Indian Railways is also working to improve the track infrastructure and stations, which can function as commercial hubs. It is also aiming to build 25,000 km of new tracks.