05 July,2024 03:55 PM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B. Aklekar
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To ease the lives of common passengers, Indian Railways has decided to go 'Janta'. Keeping its plan of luxury Vande Bharat trains, the Indian Railways has now decided to build tens of thousands of general and non-AC coaches to cut down on the shortage and allow the common man to travel easily. Complaints of crowding of trains have been increasing, with pictures and videos going viral every now and then.
The Indian Railways has now planned for the production of about 10,000 non-AC coaches for the next two years. According to officials, during FY 2024-25 and 2025-26, around 10,000 coaches are being finalized, with a record number of over 5,300 general coaches.
In FY 2024-25, Indian Railways plans to manufacture 2605 General coaches including Amrit Bharat General coaches, 1470 Non-AC Sleeper including Amrit Bharat Sleeper coaches, 323 SLR coaches, including Amrit Bharat SLR coaches, 32 High Capacity Parcel Van and 55 pantry cars.
In FY 2025-26, Railways plans to manufacture 2710 General coaches including Amrit Bharat General coaches, 1910 Non AC Sleeper including Amrit Bharat Sleeper coaches, 514 SLR coaches, including Amrit Bharat SLR coaches, 200 high-capacity Capacity Parcel Van and 110 Pantry cars.
The demand for rail service is dynamic and decreases or increases depending on seasonal variations, the growth of passenger traffic, etc. The requirements of the coaches are based on these factors and are included in the annual Coach Production Programme. The production of coaches is normally commensurate with the requirement.