Maharashtra: New Rolling Stock Depot For Bullet Train Project To Come Up In Thane

Spread over 55 hectares, a rolling stock depot with state-of-the-art maintenance equipment for bullet train project will come up in Thane in Maharashtra.

National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) has issued letter of acceptance for design and construction of Thane Rolling Stock Depot in Maharashtra to Dineshchandra-DMRC joint venture.

The package includes civil works, inspection sheds, maintenance depot and installation, testing and commissioning of maintenance facilities.

Besides Thane, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Corridor will be serviced by two more rolling stock depots located at Sabarmati and Surat in Gujarat.

The depots are being designed, based on the experience of Shinkansen depots in Japan.

According to the NHSRCL, "the bullet train rolling stock depots aim to establish a standard for train maintenance in India, drawing inspiration from Japanese Shinkansen train depots. These facilities will incorporate state-of-the-art, environment friendly features.”

The Thane depot will have facilities for the upkeep and light maintenance of the trainsets. Initially four inspection lines and 10 stabling lines will be constructed, which will increase to eight and 31 respectively in future.

The Sabarmati Rolling Stock Depot will be the largest depot with an area of about 83 hectares. It will have state-of-the-art equipment for both light and heavy maintenance of trainsets with inspection bays, washing plant, workshop, sheds, stabling lines, etc.

This depot will have 10 stabling lines which will be further increased to 29 lines in future.

The work for the construction of the Sabarmati depot, awarded to Sojitz-L&T consortium has commenced from 5 January 2023. The work of excavation for the administration building, a large RCC building, has been completed.

The design approvals for the steel structures, where the inspection bays, pits, and depot machineries, for trainset maintenance and overhaul shall be located, are under progress. The land preparation works for the depot have already been completed under another contract.

Another depot is being constructed in Surat with an area of about 40 hectares. This depot will receive the initial trainsets from Japan and will have the basic facilities for the commissioning of these trainsets.

The Surat depot is situated approximately 2 kms from the planned under-construction Surat HSR Station. Daily and regular inspection of rolling stock will be carried out in the depot premises.

During the start of operation, this depot will be capable of accommodating two trainsets for maintenance purpose (one track for inspection and one track for stabling).

The same is planned to increase in future to two tracks for inspection and four tracks for stabling.

In addition to inspection, emergency repair and wheel re-profiling facilities are also being provided. The works at the Surat depot awarded to L&T are progressing well. The steel sheds have been erected, and the finishing works are under execution. Few machineries have been received at site, including one machine from Japan. The work of track laying shall be commenced soon under the track package contract.

Water Resource Management In The Depots

The depots on Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail will have systems in place for proper water resource management.

The water requirement of Sabarmati depot will almost fully be met by harvesting rooftop rain water and from water drawn from bore wells. There will be only little dependence on the municipal supply.

The rooftop rain water shall be collected and stored in underground storage tanks within the depot premises. It shall then be treated and made fit for use. The surface run-off storm water shall be channelised into open water reservoirs, also located within the depot premises, and shall also be used for recharging the aquifers.

The sewage and effluent generated from trainsets and within the depot, shall be treated and recycled in modern sewage treatment and effluent treatment plants. This recycled water shall meet almost 70 per cent of the overall depot’s water requirement.

Suitable rooftop rain water and storm water storage as well as sewage treatment and effluent treatment plants shall also be provided at Thane depot.

Garbage handing facility: it shall be provided at the Sabarmati and Thane depots for segregation, compaction and handling of garbage generated in the trains as well as in the depot.

Salient Features Of The Green Depots

The depots have been designed with optimum land utilisation in consideration of present work load and also future expansion.

The layout of the different facilities in depots will provide proper sequence and efficient work flow.

Depots will provide a safe, comfortable and efficient working environment for the staff with wide, obstruction free pathways and inspection decks.

Sheds/buildings will be designed so that solar panels can be installed in future.

Depots will be designed in consideration of noise control, dust suppression and proper ventilation to provide healthy working environment.

Natural lighting shall be provided in addition to LED based artificial lighting systems.

Modern material handling and storage systems (with inventory management) will also be provided.