07 May,2024 07:33 AM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B. Aklekar
A special type of freight train ferries the banana yield from Raver, on Sunday. Pic/Ashish Raje
After a gap of seven months, the banana train from Raver to Delhi resumed services for this season. The train helps local farmers connect with the national markets without delay. These trains have made three trips already since April 26.
"This season the yield and inflow of bananas has increased in Raver, Yawal and Muktainagar areas. Trucks are also not easily available for shipment of bananas to North India and hence in this situation, the Banana Producers Association has opted for railway wagons to transport them to the Delhi market in a timely manner," a local farmer and trader Ramdas Patil said.
Sources said 3,500 quintals of bananas can be sent in the train at a go. Patil said it costs R610 per quintal to send bananas to Delhi by truck and road transport.
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This cost is not affordable if the rate of the yield is low. Hence, it is easier and faster to send bananas to the Delhi market and north India by train. The yield should be sent to North India every year, so we request the government of India to ask the railways to give banana farmers a subsidy of 50 per cent so that it becomes affordable," Patil said. The cost of booking a wagon is R69,371. The banana train takes 36 hours to reach Adarsh Nagar station in Delhi.
"The banana loaders want regular placement of parcel vans and once loading is done, the yield reaches the Delhi market of Azad Nagar in a timely manner without delay," divisional railway manager Ity Pande said. Pande is the first lady divisional manager of Bhusawal division.
"After a seven-month-long break, this season's first rake of raw plantation was loaded from Raver for Adarsh Nagar railway station. It was a 22-car train with a freight of R15.66 lakh. There is a potential of two trains per week working out to 8-10 such trains per month, which will fetch a monthly contribution of R1.50 crore. This is the outcome of the joint marketing by commercial and operating departments," senior divisional commercial manager Ajay Shakya said.
