Dedicated Freight Corridors

Bound to disrupt the freight

transport ecosystem
March 2021
Analytical contacts

CRISIL Messe Frankfurt

Akshay Purkayastha
Director – Transport & Logistics
CRISIL Infrastructure Advisory
Tel: (D) +91 124 672 2491
Email: akshay.purkayastha@crisil.com
Anshu Varshney
Conference Producer
Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India Pvt. Ltd.
Tel: (D) +91 124 672 2491 | (M) +91 11 8447417262
Email: anshu.varshney@india.messefrankfurt.com

Golesh Gupta
Manager – Transport & Logistics
CRISIL Infrastructure Advisory
Tel: (D) +91 124 672 2361
Email: golesh.gupta@crisil.com

Shashank Dhingra
Senior Consultant – Transport & Logistics
CRISIL Infrastructure Advisory
Tel: (D) +91 22 3342 1960
Email: shashank.dhingra@crisil.com
Contents
Foreword from CRISIL .......................................................................................................................................... 4

Foreword from Messe Frankfurt .......................................................................................................................... 5

Executive summary .............................................................................................................................................. 6

Introduction.......................................................................................................................................................... 8

Conceptualising the freight segment’s next advent – dedicated freight corridors ............................................10

DFCs under implementation ...............................................................................................................................11

Adapting design excellence and modern technology in DFCs .............................................................................13

Funding of different sections ..............................................................................................................................14

Status of ongoing projects ..................................................................................................................................15

DFCs' impact on India’s logistics space ..............................................................................................................16

More DFCs on track .............................................................................................................................................20

Way forward ........................................................................................................................................................21

3
Foreword from CRISIL
Akshay Purkayastha
Director – Transport & Logistics
CRISIL Infrastructure Advisory
A modern and cost-efficient transportation
infrastructure is a crucial cogwheel for economic
development. It not only enhances an economy’s
competitiveness, but also provides a launch pad for
high industrial growth.
In India, the railways has been a vital component of
the transportation infrastructure, carrying ~1.2
billion tonne of freight and ~8.4 billion passengers
annually – living up to its reputation of ‘lifeline of
the nation’.
However, in the last few decades, the railways has
been losing steam vis-à-vis other transportation
modes. The modal share of railways has declined
considerably in both – passenger and freight
segments. Notably, the modal share of the railways
in freight transport for lead distance beyond 300 km
has declined from 52% in fiscal 2008 to 32% in
fiscal 2019 owing to a number of reasons. These
include development of road infrastructure,
progress of the road logistics industry, changes in
consumer behaviour, industrial and consumption
patterns, coupled with internal issues of railways
such as capacity constraints, relatively high tariffs
and limited commercial and freight marketing
initiatives.
Amongst these, capacity constraints due to
insufficient investments in rail infrastructure and
technological upgradation is one of the key problem
areas. The congestion on key routes due to capacity
constraints severely affects the transit time,
predictability and reliability of rail freight transport.
4
The Ministry of Railways (MoR) has been cognisant
of capacity constraints on the railway network and
has been taking multiple initiatives in this direction.
The MoR has also prepared the Draft National Rail
Plan that identifies a huge pipeline of infrastructure
projects in the railways sector to be implemented
over the next 30 years.
Among the many railway initiatives, implementation
of the Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight
Corridor projects, which were conceived about a
decade-and-a-half ago, have been fast-tracked.
While some sections of the DFCs have already been
commissioned, the entire project is expected to be
commissioned by June 2022. The MoR has further
identified new DFCs to be developed across
locations in the country.
It is expected that the DFCs will act as a disruptor in
the freight transportation sector in general and
railways in particular. The state-of-the-art
infrastructure with modern design features is
expected to provide a competitive edge to the
railways over other transport modes by enabling
faster, reliable and predictable goods transit.
In this report, we have highlighted the key issues
faced by the railways that led to the
conceptualisation of Western and Eastern DFC
projects, the key features and specifications of the
Western and Eastern DFCs, funding structure and
implementation status, new DFCs, expected impact
of DFCs on the Indian logistics market and the way
forward
We hope you will find the report an interesting read.
Foreword from Messe Frankfurt
Kushal Sharma
Head - Conference Division
Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India Pvt. Ltd.
The Dedicated Freight Corridors (Eastern and
Western) are coming up as major infrastructural
boost as part of Indian railways’ mission to augment
its market share of freight transport by creating
additional capacity and guaranteeing efficient,
reliable, safe and cheaper options for freight
transportation to its customers,.
Mobility, Logistics and Infrastructure belong to the
focus core competence areas of Messe Frankfurt
with our wide portfolio of global trade fairs and
conferences catering to these industries and
bringing together various concerned stakeholder
groups at the leadership level to network, exchange
insights and explore synergies for future
collaboration.
It is indeed our pleasure and privilege to have
CRISIL as the “Knowledge Partner” for our Rail India
Conference & Expo 2021 and I take this opportunity
to heartily thank and congratulate Mr. Akshay
Purkayastha and the entire team at CRISIL to have
compiled this knowledge report titled “Dedicated
Freight Corridors - Bound to disrupt the freight
transport ecosystem” being released at the 5th
annual edition of our event.
Backed by CRISIL’s expertise in the transport and
logistics domain spanning over roadways and
railways and its rich experience of having worked
closely along with key nodal railway agencies in
India, we are sure this comprehensive knowledge
report shall certainly benefit Conference delegates
with a rich perspective.
I wish you all an insightful reading!
5
Executive summary
The Indian Railways (IR), carrying ~1.2 billion tonnes
of freight and ~8.4 billion passengers annually, has
been a crucial component of the transportation
infrastructure in India. However, with the course of
time, railways in the country has significantly lost
both passenger and freight modal share to other
transportation modes. Notably, in the freight
segment, railways has registered a declining trend
with freight modal share standing at ~32% in fiscal
2019, compared with ~52% in fiscal 2008 1.
The declining freight share of IR in the course of
time can be attributed to multiple factors, including
the development of road infrastructure, progression
of the road logistics industry and internal issues of
railways such as capacity constraints, non-flexible
policies, relatively high tariff rates and limited
commercial and marketing initiatives.
Among all the issues, the infrastructure and
capacity constraint of the railway network has been
a major bottleneck for rail freight traffic growth in
the country. Notably, the passenger and freight
trains run on a common network, and with IR
according priority to passenger trains, the transit
speed and predictability of transit time for freight
trains are severely affected. As per a World Bank
report, it is estimated that around 60% of the rail
network’s capacity is deployed for passenger
transport that contributes only ~30% to IR’s total
revenues.
Further, with changes in consumer behaviour,
industrial landscape and consumption patterns,
transportation in this day and age requires faster
transit speed, service reliability and predictability.
This scenario coupled with the issues of capacity
constraints leading to high and unpredictable
transit times for freight trains, puts railways on the
back foot.
1
Draft National Rail Plan, December 2020; considering traffic with lead distances beyond 300 km
2
Union Budget 2021-22
6
The Ministry of Railways (MoR) has been cognizant
of the capacity bottleneck-related issues of the
railways and has been taking multiple initiatives
towards infrastructural enhancement and upgrade
over time. In December 2020, IR released the Draft
National Rail Plan that identifies a humongous
pipeline of infrastructural augmentation and
upgrade projects.
Among all the initiatives taken on the infrastructure
augmentation front, the implementation of Western
and Eastern dedicated freight corridors (DFCs),
which were conceptualised about a decade-and-a-
half ago anticipating a quantum leap in rail freight
transport demand, have been fast-tracked.
Creation of this seamless new freight-oriented
infrastructure is expected to be a game changer for
railways and the country’s logistics paradigm. The
design features being implemented for developing
the DFCs are far more superior to those of the
existing network of IR, from a freight transport
perspective. The enhanced carrying capacity
because of doubling of train length and time
reliability of transit on DFCs should provide a
competitive edge to the railways over other
transport modes, enable it to plough back the lost
freight share and capture new time-sensitive cargo
categories. In fact, the Dedicated Freight Corridor
Corporation of India Ltd (DFCCIL) expects port and
inland container depot (ICD) rail traffic share to
increase to 31% from 25% on commissioning of
DFCs, as double-stack operations, assured transit
times and faster speed will increase container
movement on DFCs.
While some sections have already been
commissioned in recent years, the entire WDFC and
EDFC project is expected to be commissioned by
June 20222. The MoR has planned to develop
additional DFCs to provide seamless and efficient
rail logistics services across major locations in the
country.
To harness the potential of DFCs, IR has also been
promoting development of private freight terminals,
rail sidings, and port sidings, among other terminal
infrastructure, through private investments.
Moreover, DFCCIL is planning the development of
multimodal logistics parks/freight terminals/parcel
terminals along the alignment of the DFCs, which
can be a potential area of investment by the private
sector. A request for proposal was also invited by
DFCCIL late last year, offering 115 stations to the
private sector for development of logistics
parks/freight terminals/parcel terminals connected
to the DFCs.
Overall, the DFCs are expected to disrupt the rail
freight logistics in the country, providing railways an
edge over other competing modes of transport. The
following key initiatives shall further enable the
MoR to harness the full potential of the DFCs:
 Passing on the cost benefit to customers
through reduction of tariffs to enable modal
shift from roads to rail
 Accelerating industrialisation along the
corridors to create a win-win situation for
industries and the railways
 Developing logistics infrastructure along the
corridors for consolidating freight volumes and
capturing new cargo categories
 Allowing private players to operate trains on the
DFCs, thereby leveraging the Track Access
Charge Mechanism and eventually enabling
induction of new designs of rolling stock
through private investment
7
Introduction
IR, often known as the ’lifeline of the nation’, has in India increased at a CAGR of 4.16% between 1951
long acted as the backbone of transportation and 2017, whereas the rail track length increased at
infrastructure in India. Owing to its widespread a mere 0.7% CAGR during the same period.
network, it has for long remained a vital mode of
Also, in the past six decades, rail freight loading has
transport for both passengers and freight across
grown ~1,344% and passenger kilometres ~1,642%,
the country. Further, being a preferred choice for
while railway capacity, measured in route‐
bulk cargo transportation, it has been instrumental
kilometres, has grown only 23%3.
in enabling the economy’s growth by catering to the
transport demand from rail-served core sectors, Insufficient investments in rail infrastructure
including minerals, power, steel, cement and augmentation has led to a skewed modal mix
petroleum, among others. eclipsed by the road sector. Notably, the modal
share of rail in freight transportation has been
However, over the past few decades, IR has been
declining, standing at ~32% in fiscal 2019,
facing challenges primarily due to subdued
compared with ~52% in fiscal 20084. Further, the
investments in infrastructure augmentation and a
elasticity for rail transport demand, which has been
lag in technological upgrade vis-à-vis competing
estimated by IR5 at ~1.2 times the GDP growth, has
transportation modes, such as airways and
largely remained subdued at 0.8-1.0 times in the
roadways.
recent past.
The lag in infrastructure augmentation in railways is
further corroborated by the fact that the road length

Key challenges for IR

Competition
Reduced share
from alternative Capacity High freight
in freight High costs Low efficiency
modes constraints transit time
transportation
of transport

This sub-optimal modal share and stunted traffic has snatched much of the freight share from
growth of the rail network can be largely attributed railways. Moreover, congestion from capacity
to capacity constraints, coupled with the extensive constraints is further aggravated by the sharing of
development of roadways—a competing mode that the same rail network by freight and passengers.

3
Philip Capital, 2016
4
Draft National Rail Plan, December 2020, considering freight traffic with leads beyond 300 km
5
UNEP – A Case Study of the Delhi-Mumbai Dedicated Freight Corridor

8
Given IR prioritises passenger trains over freight
trains, due to the common network, the transit time
and time reliability for freight transport bears the
brunt.
Notably, in fiscal 2020 until February, the average
speed of freight trains across various railway zones
ranged from ~17 kmph to ~31 kmph, while that of
passenger trains ranged from ~31 kmph to ~52
kmph6. The range of average speed of freight trains
in fiscal 2021 in December ranged between 27 kmph
and 55 kmph because of fewer passenger trains due
to the Covid-19 pandemic, further strengthening the
argument of capacity conflict between passenger
and freight trains.
Additionally, higher tariffs of rail freight services in
India compared with global peers lead to higher
supply-chain costs, thereby resulting in lower
competitiveness in the freight transportation
segment.
According to the Economic Survey, 2017-18,
increasing competitiveness (tariff) of other modes
of transport, mainly road, further slows down
railways freight traffic. Road freight movement has
grown enormously in recent times with improved
infrastructure, and initiatives such as GST,
electronic toll collection and increase in axle loads
for commercial vehicles. Moreover, road transport
is preferred by consignors in several cases, even for
long-distance hauling services.
are a major problem for busy routes, especially the
Golden Quadrilateral, which links the country’s four
key metropolises: Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and
Kolkata. In terms of rail transport, the Golden
Quadrilateral accounts for only ~9,100 km (16% of
track length), but carries ~58% of freight and 52%
of passenger traffic7.
Among the key routes on the Golden Quadrilateral,
the Delhi-Mumbai rail route, which links the
northern hinterland with the ports of Gujarat and
Maharashtra, is one of the busiest, with a capacity
utilisation of ~115-150%8. Similarly, the Delhi-
Kolkata route, which connects the coal mines in the
east with the power plants in the north, has been
facing issues due to congestion.
Congestion on these routes has led to longer lead
times for container and dry-bulk movement,
resulting in lower efficiency and higher costs.
Additionally, apart from affecting the freight
movement, capacity constraints of the rail network
on such busy routes have also affected passenger
trains, leading to low punctuality and reduced
speed of passenger trains.

The issues related to the Indian rail network’s

capacity constraints, and the resultant congestion,

6
Monthly Evaluation Reports, Statistics & Economics Directorate,
Indian Railways
7
https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1514320
8
Sagarmala National Perspective Plan, April 2016

9
Conceptualising the freight segment’s
next advent – dedicated freight corridors
To cater to the rising freight transportation demand
and solve issues of capacity constraints on the rail
network, the Ministry of Railways (MoR) evaluated
the following three major options about a decade-
and-a-half ago:
1. Capacity augmentation through quadruple
tracks
2. Creation of dedicated passenger corridors
3. Creation of dedicated freight corridors (DFCs)
The first option of capacity augmentation along the
existing alignment was deliberated upon, but was
not considered for implementation. The main
reasons being that it might have led to a large
dislocation of the existing traffic and prevalent
land-acquisition issues, especially near urban
areas. Furthermore, it would have been a mixed
corridor with the existing track infrastructure
unsuitable for rolling stock with higher axle loads
and additional issues pertinent to fixed structures,
including the road over bridges.
The second option of creating a dedicated
passenger corridor was also not considered. One of
the major reasons being its estimation is
exorbitantly expensive due to the requirement of
passing through urban centres. Also, it would have
required grade separation in terms of longer and
higher flyovers due to paucity of space not only from
the existing rail network, but also through the
congested road network in the urban/city centres.
With passenger tariffs in the country being among
the lowest globally, the project would not have been
financially viable. Additionally, issues related to
limitation of axle load and restrictions due to the
dimensions of fixed infrastructure would have
remained as they are for freight transport
operations.
10
Considering the above factors and recognising the
need for an overhaul of the rail freight
transportation system in the country to cater to the
growing demand and achieve the desired economic
growth, the MoR embarked on a long-term plan to
develop high-capacity and high-speed DFCs along
the golden quadrilateral.
Conceptualisation of DFCs
Present constraints +
future needs
Plan to develop high-
capacity, high-speed and
efficient freight system
Conceptualisation of
DFCs
To implement the DFC project, the government set
up the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of
India Limited (DFCCIL), which is a special-purpose
vehicle, on October 30, 2006; this was launched
under the administrative control of the MoR to
undertake planning, development, mobilisation of
financial resources, and construction, maintenance
and operations of DFCs.
The DFCCIL was entrusted with the ambitious task
of creating DFCs with appropriate technology that
empowers Indian Railways to reclaim its market
share in freight transport by creating additional
capacity and ensuring efficient, reliable, safe and
economical options for freight mobility. The DFCCIL
was also given the responsibility to oversee the
setting up of multimodal logistics parks along the
DFCs to offer complete transport solutions to the
logistics industry.
DFCs under implementation
Currently, two DFCs are being implemented, which
are the Eastern DFC (EDFC) and Western DFC
(WDFC).
The EDFC, spanning 1,861 km, is being built from
Ludhiana in Punjab to Dankuni in West Bengal,
passing through Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and
Jharkhand. The WDFC, running 1,504 km, is being
built from Dadri in Uttar Pradesh to the Jawaharlal
Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Maharashtra, passing
through Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat. The below
map depicts the geographical spread of WDFC and
EDFC.

Segments along the EDFC and WDFC

LUDHIANA
Ludhiana - Khurja (401 kms)

Rewari-Dadri (127 kms) DADRI Khurja-Dadri (46 kms)

KHURJA
REWARI
Khurja- Bhaupur (351 kms)
AJMER
KANPUR
Bhaupur-Mughalsarai (402 kms)
MARWAR

MUGHALSARAI Sonnagar-Mughalsarai (126 kms)

PALANPUR
SONNAGAR

Palanpur-Makarpura (308 kms)

EDFC
SURAT

VASAI ROAD Makarpura-JNPT (430 kms)

JNPT

WDFC
Source: DFCCIL Corporate Plan 2020-2024, CRIS Analysis

EDFC As a consequence of limited space availability,

This DFC traverses through six states in two
distinctive segments — an electrified double-track
segment of 1,460 km between Dankuni in West
Bengal and Khurja in Uttar Pradesh, and an
electrified single-track segment of 401 km from
Ludhiana in Punjab to Khurja through Dadri, both in
Uttar Pradesh.
predominantly near important urban centres and
industrial townships, the corridor will take a detour
from the existing route at numerous locations.
Since the origin and destination of a sizable volume
of traffic do not essentially fall on the planned DFC,
a number of junction arrangements have been
premeditated to transfer traffic from the existing
railway network to the DFC, and vice versa.

11
The EDFC is poised to cater to a number of significantly to the economies of these states, in
industries along the belt, thereby contributing particular, and the country, in general.

EDFC highlights

Six states covered: Electrified double-track Junction arrangements to

Punjab (88km), Haryana (72 km), segment — Dankuni to Khurja transfer traffic from the
Uttar Pradesh (1,063 km), Bihar (239 km), Electrified single-track existing railway network to
Jharkhand (196 km) and West Bengal (203 km) segment –Ludhiana to Khurja DFCs, and vice versa
EDFC highlights

Total length: 1,326 km (excluding the through Dadri

Sonnagar–Dankuni section of 535 km)

Projected traffic available: Other proposed Major industries to benefit:

240.42 million tonne per annum in FY249 developments: Power, coal, finished steel,
Logistics parks at Kanpur, grains, cement, fertilisers and
Uttar Pradesh, and Ludhiana, limestone, among others
Punjab

Source: DFCCIL Corporate Plan 2020-2024, CRIS Analysis

WDFC Inland Container Depots (ICDs) in the country’s

northern hinterland.

This DFC is a 1,504 km network, which will pass
through five states and join the EDFC at Dadri.
Similar to EDFC, junction stations will act as
bridges between the existing railway system and
the WDFC network. WDFC will primarily cater to
container traffic originating from ports in
Maharashtra and Gujarat, and destined to the
Besides containers, commodities such as
petroleum, oil and lubricants, fertilisers, food
grains, salt, coal, iron, steel, and cement are
expected to move on the WDFC. The maximum
number of trains in the section is projected as 23010
(both up and down) each way in the Ajmer-Palanpur
section in the year 2024.

WDFC highlights

Five states covered: Electrified double track (2x25 Junction arrangements to

Haryana (177 km), Rajasthan (567 km), KV) from JNPT to Dadri through transfer traffic from the existing
Gujarat (565 km), Maharashtra (177 km) Vadodara, Sanand, Palanpur, railway network to DFCs, and vice
WDFC highlights

and Uttar Pradesh (18 km) Phulera and Rewari. versa

Total length: 1,504 km

Projected traffic available: Other proposed developments: Major industries to benefit:

191.50 million tonne per annum in FY2411 Logistics parks in Maharashtra, Petroleum, oil and lubricants,
Gujarat and Rajasthan fertilisers, food grain, iron, steel,
and cement, among others

Source: DFCCIL, CRIS Analysis

9
DFCCIL Corporate Plan 2020–24
10
DFCCIL Corporate Plan 2020–24
11
DFCCIL Corporate Plan 2020–24

12
Adapting design excellence and modern
technology in DFCs
DFCs will leverage the scale, size and technology on
all fronts to create an efficient rail freight network.
The design features being implemented to develop
DFCs are far more superior to those of the Indian
Railways’ existing network, from a freight
transportation perspective. The new design
elements would augment the carrying capacity and
enable higher speed.
DFCs will be bestowed with modern signalling and
telecommunications technologies such as the Train
Protection and Warning System (TPWS), Train
Management System (TMS), and Global System for
Mobile Communications (GSM-R) with automatic
signalling at 2 km space distance. This will ensure
an improved safety and protection system for train
operations.
DFCs’ modern design features
Double-container stack on the WDFC
Higher speed (up to 100 kmph)
Automatic signalling (with 2 km spacing)
Heavier axle loads (25 t)
Better gradient (1 in 200)
Longer train length (1,500 m)
Better communications (mobile train radio)
Higher track loading density (12 t/m)
Better curvature (up to 2.4 degrees)
Source: DFCCIL, CRIS Analysis
To enable long-haul smooth operations, DFCs will
adopt an advanced electric traction system, which
will result in lowering energy costs. It is estimated
that electric traction is around 47% cheaper than
diesel traction for goods traffic.
Heavier axle loads (25t–32.5t compared with the
existing norm of 22.5t) will allow higher carrying
capacity and track-loading density on the DFC
tracks.
Higher overhead equipment (OHE) — about 7.1m
compared with the existing 4.265m — would enable
double-stack operations for flat wagons on the
WDFC. This will result in higher loading capacity,
and hence, a reduction in per-unit operating cost.
Furthermore, an increased track centre distance (6
meters compared with the existing norm of 5.3
meters) coupled with longer trains (1,500m
compared with the existing 700m) would enable
higher carrying capacity per movement on DFCs.
The DFC network shall have fewer stations, falling
only at 30–40 km, and thus, leading to shorter
transit times for an overall freight journey.
Additionally, the state-of-art infrastructure would
enable freight trains to move at speeds as high as
100 kmph.
Overall, the DFC routes are expected to offer a
freight train load of around 3.5 times the current
capacity, leading to faster transit at lower costs.
The use of mechanised track-laying to ensure
accuracy and quality, coupled with reinforced
earth/walls, is one of the other latest technologies
and improved methods being adopted by DFCCIL to
develop a robust and modern rail freight network.
13
Funding of different sections
In June 2015, the Cabinet Committee on Economic
Affairs approved an estimated project cost of
Rs 814.59 billion for the EDFC and WDFC (excluding
the Sonnagar-Dankuni PPP section). This includes
the construction cost of Rs 733.92 billion (hard
costs of Rs 540.02 billion and soft costs of Rs
193.90 billion) and land cost of ~Rs 80.67 billion.
The broad debt-to-equity structure was proposed to
be pegged at 3:112. The project’s funding is secured
through the participation of multiple
bilateral/multilateral agencies, the MoR and public-
private partnerships.

Funding plan for the DFC projects

Construction cost
Rs 733.92 billion

DFC estimated project cost – Rs 814.59 billion

Land cost
Rs 80.67 billion

EDFC (*project cost: Rs 303.58 billion) WDFC (project cost: Rs 511.01 billion)

Total funding by the Japan International Cooperation

Total funding by the World Bank –
Agency (JICA) –
$2,725 million (about Rs 136.25 billion)
JPY 550 billion (about Rs 387.22 billion)

Initial Funding
Khurja– Rewari–
Sonnagar–Dankuni Bhaupur $975 million Vadodara JPY 90 billion
section section
section on EDFC
(estimated project cost Bhaupur–
Vadodara– Initial Funding
of Rs 122.18 billion) is Mughalsarai $1,100 million
JNPT section
proposed to be section
JPY 136 billion
undertaken on a PPP Ludhiana–
Rewari–
mode Khurja $650 million
Dadri section
section
*In addition to Rs 303.58 billion,
Rs 122.18 billion proposed as
PPP investments on EDFC
Mughalsarai–Sonnagar section The JICA funding was finally stepped up to
(Rs 36.79 billion) funded by the MoR Rs 387.22 billion

Source: DFCCIL, CRIS Analysis

12
DFCCIL, Project Status

14
Status of ongoing projects
According to DFCCIL, of the total estimated cost,
around Rs 679.71 billion13 of capital expenditure
(including land) was incurred, as of December 2020;
this translated into overall financial progress of
62%. The overall financial progress stood at 61% for
WDFC and 64% for EDFC, as of December 2020.
Other highlights included successful flagging off of
the first operational run of a long-haul train from
Khurja Station along the 351 Km Khurja-Bhaupur
section of the EDFC and first double-stack long-
haul freight train along the 306 km Rewari-Madar
section of the WDFC by the Honourable Prime
Minister Narendra Modi. The state-of-the-art
Operation Control Centre in Prayagraj was also
inaugurated by the Prime Minster on December 29,
2020.
Furthermore, the cumulative track-linking by
mechanised track construction stood at 3,100 km,
while the cumulative OHE wire-laying stood at 2,078
km. Significant progress was seen in major bridges
(251 completed out of 537), road under bridges (966
commissioned out of 1,582) and road over bridges
(84 completed out of 302).

DFC project status, as of December 2020

Project Status (December, 2020)

Status in brief Progress of awarded works

Cumulative track linking by mechanised

Cumulative 3,100 km
Rs 679.71 billion track construction
capex

Financial Cumulative catenary contact wire laying 2,078 km

61%
progress (WDFC)
Other highlights
Physical
64% • Major bridges – 251 completed out of 537;
progress (EDFC)
• Road under bridges – 966 commissioned out of 1582;
• Road over bridges – 84 completed out of 302;

Successful trials of goods train on the All civil contracts worth Rs 569.52 billion for the EDFC and WDFC
multiple sections across EDFC and WDFC have been awarded

Source: DFCCIL, CRIS Analysis

According to DFCCIL, the individual section target

timelines for commissioning, physical and financial
progress are in alignment; the projects are expected
to achieve the grand milestone of completion by
June 2022.

13
https://dfccil.com/Home/ProgressStatusImage

15
DFCs' impact on India’s logistics space
Commissioning of the DFCs is expected to usher a Apart from providing a boost to industries
structural change in the country’s freight dependent on transportation and logistics services,
transportation space as well as in the railways. the DFCs will vastly contribute to the economy.

Direct and indirect impact of the DFCs

Improved
Longer
High capacity Scheduled safety system
Track structure trains of 1,500 Capable of double-
to run 120 timetable of with provision of
for 25-tonne axle m compared stacking of containers
Train trains in each goods trains, train protection
load, and bridges with current on western corridor,
speed of direction enabling time and warning
and formations 700 m leading to higher
100 kmph reliability of systems
designed for 32.5 loading capacity and
transit
tonne axle load reduction in operational
cost

Faster movement of Enabling introduction of

Higher carrying capacity Freeing up of capacity on
goods alogn with new and improved
of trains to help railways Indian Railways network
enhanced time reliability designs, and advanced
save on operational costs for passengers
of transit technology

Improved
Enhancement of passenger travel Incremental traffic
Reduction of Development of Enabling private
railways’ experience due to and savings on
operational costs industrial corridors participation in rail
competitiveness enhanced capacity greenhouse gas
for railways and logistics parks operations
for freight on traditional rail emissions
network

Source: DFCCIL, CRIS analysis

Reduction of operational costs: One of the major

benefits that the DFCs will provide the Indian
Railways will be a reduction in operating cost. For
instance, double-stacking of containers on the
WDFC, and doubling of the length of trains from
700m to 1,500m, are expected to reduce the per-
unit operating cost for the Indian Railways. Further,
the use of electric traction instead of diesel traction
will result in savings on energy cost. Overall, the
DFCs are expected to lower the operating cost of
rail freight transport by ~40%. This will pave the
way for rationalisation of tariffs, translating into
lower transportation cost for rail consignors.

16
Enhancement of railways’ competitiveness in
freight: With state-of-the-art technology and
design, the DFCs will enable freight trains to
operate at speeds as high as 100 kmph. Hence,
average transit time for freight movement is
expected to reduce drastically.
Further, with a dedicated network for freight
operations, not only will capacity get augmented,
but punctuality of the freight trains will also
improve. Scheduled freight trains are also expected
to run on the DFCs, enabling effective competition
with the roads sector. In fact, this will provide an
opportunity for the railways to capture time-
sensitive freight segments, such as express cargo,
e-commerce, and agricultural products, for which
punctuality is one of the most important attributes
in the supply chain.
Improved passenger travel experience: The transfer
of freight traffic to the DFCs is expected to free up
considerable capacity on the existing railway
network for passenger transportation services,
enabling enhancement of service levels, especially
punctuality and average speed of trains. This will
enable the railways to compete with the road and
aviation sectors. Further, freeing up of capacity
should enable the railways to move forward with its
plan to induct private passenger trains on the
existing network.
Development of industrial corridors and logistics
parks: Setting up of industries and logistics parks in
the vicinity of the corridors will create a win-win
situation for the railways as well as the operating
players. Based on this, the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial
Corridor (DMIC), along the WDFC, and the Amritsar-
Kolkata Industrial Corridor (AKIC), along the EDFC,
were conceived. Various logistics parks and rail-
junction facilities are proposed along the WDFC and
the EDFC. The industries and logistics parks in the
vicinity will have better access to the DFCs, which,
in turn, will garner traffic from these developments,
creating a win-win situation for all in the
ecosystem.
To be sure, various initiatives in the form of policy
support, such as Private Siding Rail Connectivity
Policy, Private Freight Terminal Policy, and Port Rail
Terminal Connectivity Policy, are already in place.
Moreover, the DFCCIL invited request for proposals
in November 2020 from interested parties for
developing logistics parks/ freight terminals/ parcel
terminals and their connectivity with DFC stations
through private investments. In total, ~115 stations
17
along the WDFC and the EDFC were offered for
connectivity to private players under this initiative.
The progress of the industrial corridors,
development of logistics parks/freight
terminals/parcel terminals, and other private sector
initiatives will be critical for the success of the
DFCs.

Key private freight terminals, railway sidings and port connectivity projects proposed along the DFCs
Greenfield MMLP/ PFT

Brownfield MMLP/ PFT

Greenfield Good shed

Brownfield Good shed

Port / Sidings

Nabha TPP
Amtek Sadhoogarh
New Khanna GS New Pilkhani GS
New Mandigovindgarh GS New Kalanaur GS
New Shambhu CONCOR Dadri
CONCOR, Khatwas DMIC MMLP, New Dadri
CONCOR PFT, Pirthava
HSIDC MMLP, Nangal Choudhary
New Meerut GS
Jawahar TPP (2021)
CONCOR PFT, Phulera
New Tundla GS
Auriya TPP IWAI MMLP, Varanasi

CONCOR RTH, Swaroopganj New Mughalsarai GS

MMLP Kanpur
BPCL Mughalsarai
Meja STPP
DMICD Sanand
New Mirzapur GS
CONCOR ICD, Varnama
Ultratech Cement, SAIL Dankuni
Hazira Infrastructure Pvt Ltd
Navkar Terminal PFT Dankuni coal complex
Nargol Pvt Ltd EDFC SFA Logistics

JSW Nandgaon port

New Nilje GS
JNPT

WDFC
Source: DFCCIL

Enabling private participation in rail operations: and run freight trains on the railway network by
According to the institutional arrangement paying track-access charge to the infrastructure
envisaged for operating the DFCs, the Indian provider.
Railways will act as a sole customer for the DFCCIL.
In India, the introduction of private rail operators
For operating the freight trains, the DFCCIL will
will enable competition in the sector, leading to
provide its infrastructure to the Indian Railways,
better service quality, thereby benefitting the end-
which, in turn, will pay track-access charge (user
user.
fee) to the DFCCIL.
Incremental traffic and savings on greenhouse gas
This track-access charge is expected to enable a
emissions: The DFCCIL expects port and ICD rail
mechanism for the introduction of private freight
traffic share to rise from 25% to 31%, as double-
rail operations in India. A similar mechanism is in
stack operations, assured transit times, and faster
place in many developed economies, such as
speeds will augment container movement on the
France, Germany, and other European economies.
DFCs. It also expects the share of cement traffic by
Here, private players are allowed to offer services

18
rail to improve from 30% to 38%, because of better
service levels by the DFCs and resolution of issues
related to multiple handling. Overall, the WDFC and
the EDFC are expected to yield additional traffic of
~2.2 billion tonne over the first 30 years of
operations.
Further, with rail being an environment-friendly
mode of transportation, commissioning of the DFCs
will help save ~457 million tonne of carbon dioxide
(CO2) emission over the first 30 years of operation,
enabling the country to achieve its climate goals.

Savings from greenhouse gas emissions

Western corridor Eastern corridor

- 6.0X - 2.5X

466 116 47.5

77

No DFC scenario DFC scenario No DFC scenario DFC scenario

Source: Report on Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Analysis for Dedicated Freight Corridor, 2011; DFCCIL

Reducing carbon footprint through sustainable development of DFCs

Development of the DFCs will decongest the saturated conventional freight rail network, and will promote
shifting of freight transport to the more-efficient rail transport. This shift is expected to offer significant
reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector in India – the DFCs are expected to save
~457 million tonne of CO2 emissions in the first 30 years of operations.

Source: DFCCIL

19
More DFCs on track
In addition to the WDFC and EDFC 14, the DFCCIL has
proposed the development of four more corridors,
largely across the Golden Quadrilateral.

Future DFCs

Corridor From–To Distance

East–West Corridor Palghar - Dankuni 2,013 km

North–South Corridor Palwal - Chennai 1,957 km

East Coast Corridor Kharagpur - Vijaywada 1,265 km

Southern Corridor Chennai - Goa 892 km

EDFC and WDFC

Future projects

Not to scale

Source: DFCCIL, Draft National Rail Plan

In Union Budget 2016-17, the MoR announced three
new DFCs - East–West Corridor, North-South
Corridor, and East Coast Corridor - at a total
investment of ~Rs 3,000 billion to help the Indian
Railways meet the ever-growing demand for faster
and efficient movement of freight. Apart from these
three corridors, one more DFC, i.e. Southern
Corridor, from Chennai to Goa (~892km), is in the
pipeline.
While the East-West Corridor (2,013 km) will be built
between Dankuni and Palghar, the North-South
Corridor (1,957 km) is planned between Palwal and
Chennai, and the East Coast Corridor (1,265 km) will
traverse between Kharagpur and Vijayawada. The
Detailed Project Reports for these DFCs have been
sanctioned, and are in the preparatory stages.

14
DFCCIL Corporate Plan 2017-2022

20
Way forward
The DFCs are expected to change the country’s
freight transportation landscape, and provide the
railways a competitive edge over other
transportation modes. The following key initiatives
will further enable the Indian Railways to harness
the full potential of the DFCs:
Accelerating industrialisation along the corridors: If
industries are set up in the vicinity of the DFCs, both
railways and the industries will benefit. Recognising
this, the DMIC and WDFC, and the AKIC and EDFC
were conceived. Though the DMIC was approved in
2007 and the AKIC in 2014, progress on these
corridors has been limited. To leverage the full
potential of the DFCs, work on both industrial
corridors should be accelerated in tandem with the
commissioning of the DFCs.
Developing logistics infrastructure along the
corridors: DFCs are expected to enable one of the
most critical components of transportation, i.e.
punctuality. This feature of the DFCs can help the
railways tap unconventional cargo segments in the
future, such as express logistics and perishables, to
offset an expected decrease in coal requirements
for power plants, owing to expansion of renewables.
This is notable in the case of the EDFC, which
currently expects coal traffic share of 50-55%.
However, to tap these segments, an aggregation
infrastructure will be required to amass goods at
specific loading points and help in the transition to
rail. Though logistics parks and facilities have been
planned along the corridors, progress on their
development has been limited; the DFCCIL and the
DMIC are currently in the process of developing
such logistics parks at some of the locations.
21
To explore this option, the DFCCIL has also initiated
development of logistics parks, freight terminals
and parcel terminals along the corridor via private
investment. This will also include connectivity of
these infrastructure with the DFC stations along the
corridor. The selection process of the private
players is currently underway.
Allowing private players to run trains on the DFCs:
As per the institutional arrangement envisaged for
operations of the DFCs, the Indian Railways will be
the sole customer for the DFCCIL, which will provide
the infrastructure for operation of the trains. Indian
Railways will pay track-access charge to the
DFCCIL, and other customers / freight operators will
be routed through it. But to enhance competition in
the sector and the service levels, and leverage
private sector capital for the induction of world-
class rolling stock, the Indian Railways may
22
consider allowing private players to run freight
trains on the DFC network by paying track-access
charge to the DFCCIL. This is one of the models
followed in many countries, and several players
operating internationally could be interested in
investing and operating in this area.
Passing on cost benefits to customers: The
resultant savings on operational costs due to
commissioning of the DFCs is expected to help the
railways immensely on the financial front. However,
the railways may consider passing on some of the
cost benefit to customers through lower tariffs. The
reduction in tariffs will not only enable the railways
to have a competitive advantage over other modes,
but also help the industry reduce logistics costs
through a reliable and cost-effective mode of
transport.
Notes
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