The Indian Army on 14 June conducted a successful trial by moving a military train loaded with vehicles and equipment from New Rewari to New Phulera validating the efficacy of the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC). The intricate and synchronised coordination by the Indian Army with Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Ltd (DFCCIL) and Indian Railways will significantly enhance the mobilisation capability of the Armed Forces.
The DFC by the Indian Railways provides faster movement of freight across the Country. These trials were part of the “Whole of the Nation Approach” for optimising national resources and achieve seamless synergy among various ministries and departments. Development of infrastructure at certain locations to support mobilisation and trials to validate move of defence owned rolling stock on Roll On-Roll Off (RO-RO) service is being formalised and modalities are being evolved.
Interactions by the Indian Army with all stakeholders including DFCCIL & Indian Railways will now assist in leveraging the DFC and allied infrastructure into the mobilisation matrix of Armed Forces. These trials herald the first step in this process to pave the way for enhancing the operational readiness of Armed Forces. This initiative would set in place processes to ensure that military requirements are dovetailed in the national infrastructure development.
Indian Railways is a statutory body under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Railways , Government of India that operates India’s national railway system. It manages the fourth-largest railway network in the world by size, with a route length of 67,956 km (42,226 mi) as of 31 March 2020. 45,881 km (28,509 mi) or 71% of all the broad-gauge routes are electrified with 25 kV 50 Hz AC electric traction as of 1 April 2020. In the freight segment, IR runs 8,479 trains daily.
