Passenger Trains Roll On DFC Tracks As Railway Line Was Closed Due To Accident

Coming to the rescue of Indian Railways, six trains including a Rajdhani, a Patna Janta and a Seemanchal Express were run on the Eastern DFC on Friday.

This is an example of how the dedicated freight corridors (DFCs), meant for faster movement of cargo, can also be used in emergency to haul passenger trains.

These trains used the Eastern DFC (EDFC) track as the Indian Railway line was closed due to an accident between Mirzapur and Jhingura stations in Uttar Pradesh.

These six express trains ran on the EDFC between New Karchana and New Dagmagpur (approximately 110 km) in UP to bypass the blocked stretch and to ensure that the trains were not cancelled because of the accident.

Officials said this has proved that the DFCs can be an “option in distress” and will help achieve the objective of “wheels should not stop”.

Last year, the Railway Board had notified that the DFCs can be used in times of emergencies for passenger train services. This option can be exercised in case of natural calamities or train accidents.

Since the Eastern and Western DFCs are nearing completion, this enabling provision will benefit the passengers of the Delhi-Howrah and Delhi-Mumbai routes. These are the two busiest routes on railway networks in the country.

These two rail routes also run parallel to the two DFCs.

Nearly 80 per cent of Eastern DFC and Western DFC run parallel to the existing Delhi-Howrah rail route and Delhi-Mumbai railway lines.

The faster movement of freight trains on the DFCs will also reduce the congestion on the existing railway network and thereby enable the Indian Railways to run more passenger trains.