Railways ferries 124-mt freight, clocks 5% rise since last year

The Indian Railways, which was witnessing freight growth upwards of 8-9 per cent every month this financial year (2022-23, or FY23), saw its second consecutive month of tepid growth in November. The national transporter carried 123.9 million tonnes (mt) of goods during the month, registering a 5 per cent increase against last year, according to the provisional data furnished by the Ministry of Railways.

“On a cumulative basis from Aprilnovember, freight loading of 978.72 mt was achieved against last year’s loading of 903.16 mt during the same period — an improvement of 8 per cent. The Railways has earned ~1.05 trillion, against ~91,127 crore over the past year — an improvement of 16 per cent, compared with the same period of last year,” said the ministry.

In October, freight loading by the national transporter grew at a meagre 1 per cent, owing to slowdowns in some of the biggest items in its basket — coal, iron ore, and containers.

Commodity-wise data for November has not been made available yet.

Railway officials said that growth in the past two months has been lower than expected, and that the ministry may end FY23 ferrying 1,500-1,550 mt of goods if the current trends persist. This is against an internal target of 1,700 mt, which was widely understood as aspirational.

“The Railways is leveraging its renewed rolling stock, but the current track network can only provide for so much growth. New corridors will play a crucial role in freight growth,” said a senior official. Business Standard had previously reported that the national transporter is eyeing new coal connectivity projects worth ~94,153 crore as part of its energy corridor programme.