Tejas Express: Not so tej -Governance Now

Tejas Express: Not so tej

The semi-high speed train Tejas Express ran at 110 kmph on its inaugural run against the railways’ claim of 160 kmph

Vishwas Dass | May 24, 2017 | New Delhi

#coaches #rolling stock #Shatabadi #Tejas #Indian Railways #Mumbai #Goa #Bhopal #New Delhi

Tejas Express, a semi-high speed train, is supposed to run at 200 kmph. But, on its inaugural run between Mumbai to Karmali (Goa), it touched a maximum speed of 110 kmph.

A few days before it was flagged off by railway minister Suresh Prabhu on May 22, Indian Railways claimed that the train can run at a speed of 160 kmph despite constraints related to rail tracks.

Member (traffic), railway board, Mohd. Jamshed said it was found that the train is running within permissible limit of 110 kmph due to reasons related to tracks in the Konkan railway which is known for its rugged terrain.

“Speed of a train depends on rolling stocks and fixed infrastructure i.e. tracks. Konkan railway’s track passes through several tunnels and its topography and movement pattern is quite different. We have to ensure protection around tunnels due to frequent landslides. Because of these reasons, the train is allowed to run at 110 kmph. The speed would be increased to 120 kmph after a few months,” Jamshed said.

The railway board member said the newly unveiled Mumbai-Karmali Tejas Express took almost same time as its New Delhi-Bhopal Shatabdi which is country’s longest Shatabdi service. It takes eight hours and 25 minutes to cover 706 km from Delhi to Bhopal.

“Tejas took eight hours and 30 minutes to cover a distance of 703 km between Mumbai and Karmali, which is fair enough,” he told Governance Now.

He elaborated that even the speed of Bhopal Shatabdi varies from station to station because of various factors. “Till Agra, Bhopal Shatabdi runs at 140 kmph and its speed gets reduced to 120 kmph after crossing Bina station. Speed depends on tracks, different conditions and sections,” he said.

Jamshed said that the railways is working to ensure its coaches and locomotives run at a speed of 200 kmph.

When asked why Tejas’s fare is 20 percent higher than other Shatabdis, he said every coach of Tejas costs around Rs 3.45 crore against an LHB coach which costs Rs 2.43 crore. “We are providing passengers with sophisticated facilities which they won’t get in the roadways. A bus takes over 14 hours to reach Goa from Mumbai which is uncomfortable too. But Tejas offers a comfortable ride to people,” he said.

Comments

Other News

A walk down the rich history of Ayurveda

The Indic Quotient: Reclaiming Heritage through Cultural Enterprise By Kaninika Mishra Bloomsbury India, 230 pages, Rs. 499 Over the past decade, India has seen a significant rise in passion for enterprise as well as pride in her

Is China gearing up for prolonged conflict with India?

International observers will keenly watch the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee meeting next month. The central committee is the highest organ of the CCP with a mandate to execute the decision of the National Congress which is convened once every five years. Besides economy, r

TRP-driven model bred irresponsibility: Sudhir Chaudhary

News profession is organic in nature, requires responsibility and discipline, and there is no room for mistake. To maintain high standards of accuracy you need discipline and hygiene in the newsroom. Sudhir Chaudhary, editor in chief of Zee News, Zee Business and Wion, has said that a TRP-driven business m

This Mumbai NGO empowers children with skills

When Dharmendra Pandey, a fruit-seller had to leave Mumbai after the imposition of the lockdown during the Covid-19 pandemic, and return to his village in Uttar Pradesh, he was staring at economic uncertainties ahead. Little did he know that his 16-year-old son, Mahavir, had acquired skills that would come

Masks: Awareness: near-total, compliance: half-way

Wearing a face mask is the first line of defence against the novel coronavirus, along with maintaining social distance and frequently washing hands with soap. More than six months after the outbreak of Covid-19, nearly 90 percent of people in India have become aware of the necessity of wearing a face mask,

Covid-19: Daily recoveries cross 1 lakh mark, new cases far fewer

Is India finally gaining an upper hand over the Covid-19 pandemic? After weeks of new cases hitting 90,000-plus every day, the tide seems to be turning, as the number came down to 75,083 on Tuesday, and the recoveries were not only higher than that but crossed the 1 lakh mark too. The countr