Maligaon, July 9 (MExN): Ministry of Railways has recently invited Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for private participation for operation of passenger train services over 109 Origin-Destination (OD) pairs of routes through introduction of 151 modern Trains (Rakes). These 151 trains would be over and above the already existing trains, a press statement from Subhanan Chanda, CPRO Northeast Frontier Raileay said on Thursday.
These trains are going to run on the routes where there the demands for trains are already higher than the existing capacity. The safety clearance of trains will be done by Railways only. The driver and guard of the trains will be Railway officials, he informed.
The 109 OD Pairs have been formed into 12 Clusters across the Indian Railway network. Each train will have a minimum of 16 coaches. Majority of Trains are to be manufactured in India (Make in India). The private entity shall be responsible for financing, procuring, operation and maintenance of the trains. They will pay fixed haulage charges, energy charges as per actual consumption and a share in Gross Revenue determined through a transparent bidding process, to Indian Railways.
The project would entail private sector investment of about Rs 30,000 crore. This is the first initiative of private investment for running passenger trains over Indian Railways network.
The private entities for undertaking the project would be selected through a two-stage competitive bidding process comprising of Request for Qualification (RFQ) and Request for Proposal (RFP). RFQ process will be for pre-qualification and short listing of the bidders will be based on their financial capacity, who will be required to offer share in the Gross Revenue at RFP stage (bid parameter) for undertaking the project.
The objective of this initiative is to introduce modern technology rolling stock with reduced maintenance, reduced transit time, boost job creation, provide enhanced safety, provide world class travel experience to passengers, and also reduce demand supply deficit in the passenger transportation sector, the release added.
