Railway, Shipping ministries ink MoU for Indore-Manmad railway line project

August 30, 2018: The Jawaharlal Nehru Port trust under the ministry of shipping, the ministry of railways and the state governments of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh have inked a MoU for implementation of a 362 kilometre new railway line between Indore and Manmad.

The project will reduce the distance from Mumbai/Pune to key central India locations by 171 kilometers. The project passes through the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor nodes Igatpuri, Nashik and Sinnar; Pune and Khed; and Dhule and Nardana.

The project is estimated to result in cumulative net economic benefits of Rs 15,000 crore in the first ten years of operations. Its Logistics advantages include providing a shorter route for passenger as well as the freight traffic originating from / terminating or crossing through the region. The project will reduce the logistics cost for the cargo centres located in Northern India such as Lucknow, Agra, Gwalior and Kanpur belt as well as Indore – Dhule – Bhopal region to the gateway ports JNPT and Mumbai. It will be an alternate route to the existing central and western railway lines and will reduce congestion on the over utilized existing railway network. In addition, it will help in employment generation, reduction in pollution, fuel consumption and vehicle operating costs.

The Indian Port Rail Corporation Limited (IPRCL) carried out the feasibility, traffic and bankability for the project. Railway Board approved the implementation of the project through IPRCL on Joint Venture SPV model. The proposed SPV would be in the form of a Joint Venture Company between Ministry of Shipping or its nominated PSUs/Entity including JNPT (which will be the main promoter), Government of Maharashtra or its nominated PSUs/Entity, Government of Madhya Pradesh or its nominated PSUs/Entity, and others.