12,000 HP Electric Locomotive: PM Modi to Flag Off India's Heaviest Freight Carrier on April 10
The locomotive is developed by France's rolling stock giant Alstom, under a high-value FDI venture.
New Delhi, April 7: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to flag-off the country's strongest freight carrier - a 12,000 horsepower electric locomotive - at Bihar's Madhepura locomotive factory on April 10.
The unveiling of the 12,000 HP locomotive will include India among the elite list of countries including Russia, China, Germany and Sweden, using freight carriers of such power bandwagon.
As of now, the engine with highest power in use with the Indian Railways is of 6,000 horsepower. As a result of the lacklustre power capacity of freight carriers, the movement of goods and cargo remains slow in India, causing a major roadblock in the country's march towards development.
The locomotive is developed by France's rolling stock giant Alstom, under a high-value FDI venture. The project's total cost is reported to be Rs 20,000 crore, which includes the manufacture and maintenance of 800 engines of 12,000 HP.
After the launch of April 10, four more locomotives would be released for use this fiscal, followed by 35 in the next financial year and 60 in 2020-21. Subsequently, a total of 100 locomotives will be produced by the factory each year till the contract of building 800 engines gets exhausted.
The average cost of each locomotive amounts to Rs 25 crore. Two maintenance units will be set up under the project at Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur and Maharashtra's Nagpur.
The first five locomotives are slated to be built in France and transported to India, whereas, the remaining 795 will be manufactured here under the Make in India framework.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 07, 2018 01:06 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).