Despite having the second largest rail network in the world, Indian Railways (IR) has not been able to bring it on growth trajectory. The rail sector is infested with challenges like snail´s pace expansion and modernisation, poor customer service

The operating ratio of railways has continuously been above 90 per cent. This has, therefore, resulted in the Indian Railways having very little funds left for investing in projects such as new line construction, gauge conversion, doubling, etc.

Japanese majors, such as Toshiba, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Corporation, Mitsubishi Electric and Mitsui are keen on participating in the supply of 200 electric locomotives to Indian Railways for use on the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor and its feeder lines.

The ports sector has undergone considerable change since the nineties, but reforms and development have taken a backseat. Janaki Krishnamoorthi examines various approaches to boost this crucial sector.

Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC), the Uttar Pradesh government is expecting Rs 42,000 crore investment into the state. In the state, almost 57 per cent of the EDFC measuring 1,049 km would traverse across 18 districts, bringing a lot of industrial benefits for the state. The government said that the proposed alignment of 1,840 km EDFC, starting from Punjab, traverses UP via Khurja and ends at Dankuni in West Bengal.

Under the proposed Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC), the Uttar Pradesh government is expecting to get 42,000 crore investment into the state. In the state, almost 57 per cent of the EDFC measuring 1,049 km would traverse across 18 districts, bringing a lot of industrial benefits for the state.

The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has approved the commencement of preparatory work on creating an Amritsar-Delhi-Kolkata Industrial Corridor to give a boost to industrial development in the densely populated states of Northern India.

Railways needs to create capacity along its arterial routes viz, the Golden Quadrilateral and diagonals as well as augment capacity on rail links serving ports, industrial hubs and to existing and new mining areas,

Differential tariffs for major and minor or private ports will have a debilitating impact on investment in major ports such as JNPT, says L Radhakrishnan, Chairman, JNPT, in an interview with Janaki Krishnamoorthi. Over the years, the Indian ports sector has witnessed structural changes, with state monopoly gradually giving way to greater private sector participation in port invest­ment.