The Indian Railways registered approximate earnings of Rs 48,913 crore in the nine-month period between April and December 2022, up 71 percent from the Rs 28,569 crore during the same period of the previous year.

The number of passengers with reserved bookings rose to 59.61 crore compared to 56.05 crore during the said period, registering a 6.35 percent growth while the unreserved passenger segment saw a growth of 137 percent to 401.97 crore compared to 169.68 crore in the same period of the previous year, a statement from the Railway Ministry on Monday, January 2, said.

The revenue generated from reserved passengers between April and December 2022 was Rs 38,483 crore versus Rs 26,400 crore in the same period previous year, at a growth rate of 46 percent while that from the unreserved passenger segment grew 381 percent from Rs 2,169 crore to Rs 10,430 crore.

The jump in railways' earnings shows a massive growth in the movement of people on the national transporter over the last few years which were impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown.

Also read:

Indian Railways data breach: IRCTC servers not targeted, says corporation

The Railways has also introduced new trains such as the Vande Bharat Express and Tejas Express which have modern features like faster speed, on-board infotainment, GPS-based passenger information system, and zero discharge vacuum bio toilets. Besides, a number of new trains have also been launched in the last several months.

Higher airfares during the festive season also likely contributed to the rise in passengers opting for trains, which are comparatively cheaper.

Also read: Railways a huge opportunity for the private sector, says Baba Kalyani as shares gain most in two months

Railways freight earnings grew 16%

Railways also registered a 16 percent growth in freight earnings clocking Rs 120,478 crore during the April-December 2022 against Rs 104,040 crore in the same period the previous year.

Subhash Goyal, President of Confederation of Tourism Professionals of India, and Chairman, Stic Travel Group, felt the hike in diesel prices had pushed many transporters to choose railways as it is the cheapest mode of transport.

High freight rates will raise cost of raw material and trigger inflation as a chain reaction. The Railways can privatise some trunk routes to rationalise costs and operations," he suggested, also demanding that there needs to be a cap on airfares at three times the operating cost.

According to government sources, efforts to complete electrification of leftover patches and sidings over the past three years are yielding results. The railways has so far achieved 83% electrification.

A record track augmentation (doubling, new lines, etc) also paved the way for the rise in average speed of goods trains.

"The same rolling stock has seen lesser turnaround time as average speed increased," a source told CNBC TV18.com.

Injection of over 15,000 wagons and 500+ locomotives in the past few years, efficient train operation (loading, movement and unloading) has also helped, the source said.

(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)

First Published:Jan 2, 2023 6:28 PM IST