Eco-13-D6-RAILWAYS-Shipping-Ports

Page 1 of 5
GS Foundation 2024
Railways, Shipping and Ports Batch D6 - #ECO013
RAILWAYS
1. Current state of Indian Railways:
 4th largest railway network system [68,031 kms route length &
22,500 operating trains (Eco. Survey 2022-23)]
 Divided in 18 zones, further divided into 71 operating divisions.
 24 million passengers every day; 203.88 million tonnes of freight
per day (March 2020);
 Expected to account for 40% of the total global share of rail activity
by 2050.
 100% FDI allowed in the railway sector.
2. Railways: General Benefits:

 Cost effective for long haulage freight; environmentally friendly-
less fuel intensive per ton mile; capable of hauling large loads;
reliable in schedules; demarcated routes; safer compared to
roadways.
3. General Challenges:
 Cross subsidization; inadequate investment in operation,
maintenance, technological upgradation;
 populist pricing policy – sticky passenger fares; outdated and
overloaded infrastructure, network capacity constraints, high
transit time; centralised organizational set up; political
interference; poor quality rolling stock; obsolete management;
human resources (vacancies in critical areas, lack of training,
motivation); railway accidents.
4. New Developments: Privatization in Railways:

 Context: Government in Parliament → railways infrastructure will
never be privatised but it plans to monetise its assets to generate
resources to boost growth
 Benefits: improved efficiency; lack of political interference; long
term Planning (not based on election cycles); shareholders based
accountability; competitiveness in quality and price; prevent
Government’s loss; improved quality of service; latest technology
(railway coaches, station facilities, online service); Safety; capacity
augmentation
 Challenges: natural monopoly; might hike fares; coverage limited
to lucrative Sectors and regions; Accountability concern;
fragmentation in railways industry; regulatory burden, lack of
incentives for investors; procedural/operational issues such as
delays in land acquisition.
Forum Learning Centre:Delhi - 2nd Floor, IAPL House, 19 Pusa Road, Karol Bagh, New Delhi - 110005 | Patna - 2nd floor, AG Palace, E Boring Canal
Road, Patna, Bihar 800001 | Hyderabad - 1st & 2nd Floor, SM Plaza, RTC X Rd, Indira Park Road, Jawahar Nagar, Hyderabad, Telangana 500020
9311740400, 9311740900 | https://academy.forumias.com | admissions@forumias.academy | helpdesk@forumias.academy
Page 2 of 5
GS Foundation 2024
4. High Speed Railways System:

 Vision 2020: two-pronged approach → increase speed using
conventional technology + advanced intercity high-speed
corridors.
 Advantage: time efficient as compared to air travel for distances
below 800 km; transports more passengers per unit of energy; can
increase domestic manufacturing capacity; regional economic
corridor development
 Disadvantage: run at loss in every single country where they
operate currently; highly costly; unaffordable to majority of
population.
5. Dedicated Freight Corridor→

 High speed and high-capacity rail corridor dedicated specifically
for freight; 6 Dedicated Freight Corridor→ Eastern, Western,
North-South, East-West; Southern; East Coast
 Need: increased burden (the eastern and western corridors carry
the heaviest traffic and are highly congested); Increased transport
demand; Invest potential (industrial corridors and logistic parks);
improving carrying capacity; reduced freight cost and pollution
 Challenges: land acquisition; viability of freight transport; slow
progress
6. Railway Sector Reforms:

 Modernisation: Sam Pitroda committee - modernisation of
coaches, signals, rolling stock; track upgradation; green toilets;
solar energy run platforms; use of ICT for train timings, mobile
ticketing; social media.
 Safety: Anil Kakodkar committee - Railway Safety Regulatory
Authority; Railway Safety Commission; Advanced signalling
system; LHB design coaches; over bridges and underpasses in all
crossings; DFCs and High-speed railways
 Resource Mobilization: safety cess; merging of Railway budget;
Disinvestment in railway PSUs; commercial accounting;
Monetisation of railway assets.
 Railway organisation: Bibek Debroy committee - streamline
recruitment & HR processes; Indian Railway Management
Services; Move away from non core services; decentralisation to
level of Divisional Railway Manager; all production units be placed
under Indian Railway Manufacturing Company (IRMC);
independent regulator.
Page 3 of 5
GS Foundation 2024
7. Initiatives by Government:
 Safety: Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh; ‘‘Fog Safe’’; Train Protection
Warning System (TPWS)/ Train Collision Avoidance System
(KAVACH).
 Infrastructure: Railway Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF);
Rail Investment and Planning Organisation; Rail Development
Authority; Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) Project;
Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) Project; Gati Shakti Multi-Modal
Cargo Terminal (GCT).
 Other initiatives: New trains (Tejas, Humsafar, Mahanama and
Antyodaya trains, Vande Bharat trains); Project Swarn for
Rajdhanis and Shatabdis; Rail Wire Sathi (internet kiosks); Rail
Saarthi ( e-ticket booking, complaint management, clean my
coach etc); SFOORTI app to track the trains; Railcloud for internet
connectivity; Hyperloop technology; Kisan Rail trains ( FY21).
SHIPPING AND PORTS

1. Sector Overview →
 Shipping and Inland waterways have modal share of 6% (Roads-
54%, railways-33%)
 95% of India’s trade by volume and 68% by value is carried out via
sea;
 100% FDI allowed in shipping sector;
 100% tax concession for 10 years on port development;
 Major Ports (12) and Minor Ports (205)
 Sector regulator: Ministry of Shipping
2. Ports:
 Types:
o Major Ports: regulated by Ministry of Shipping; tariff
imposed by Tariff Authority of Major Ports.
o Minor Ports: regulated and tariff imposed by respective
state governments.
 Problems: high tariff in major ports; ageing of existing Indian fleet;
heavy silting and inadequate dredging facility; poor mechanisation
due to Port Trust model and labour unions; Poor multimodal
connectivity; high turnaround time; road congestion; inability to
handle large container vessels
 Suggestions: building infrastructure for cargo handling; port
mechanisation; switching to ‘Landlord Tenant’ model; multi-modal
port development; improve the operational efficiencies through
mechanization, digitization and process simplification; improve
the draught levels to handle large cargo containers.
Page 4 of 5
GS Foundation 2024
3. Port Management Models:

 Service Port/Port Trust model- The port authority owns the land
and all available assets. Here, the port trust is both the landlord
and the cargo terminal operator.
 Landlord port model- The publicly governed port authority acts
as a regulatory body and as landlord while private companies carry
out port operations.
4. Steps taken by government:

 Sagarmala: 4 pillars → Port modernisation, Port Connectivity, Port
led industrialisation, Coastal community development; Sagarmala
Development Company at central level; a National Sagarmala Apex
Committee; ‘Community Development Fund for coastal population
- Coastal Economic Zones→ on the lines of SEZs; Improvement in
efficiency of ports; capacity improvement in ports; construction of
upto 8 new ports; coastal community development(skill
development of fisherman); Benefits → employment in export led
coastal economy; FDI; coastal development challenges → land
availability; infrastructure; fragmented approach
 Major Port Authorities Act, 2021: simplified Board of Port
Authority (11-13 members from 17-19 members); State government
representatives where the major port is situated; Tariff authority
for major ports given powers to fix tariff; Adjudicatory board - The
Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime claims) Act 2017
→ The acts gives jurisdiction to HC.
 Maritime India Vision (MIV) 2030: develop best-in-class port
infrastructure; Drive end-2-end logistics efficiency and cost
competitiveness; Enhance global share in ship building, repair, and
recycling; Promote Ocean, Coastal, and River Cruise Sector;
Become top seafaring Nation.
5. INLAND WATERWAYS:
 Total navigable length of waterways in India: around 14,850
kilometres (West Bengal: Highest)
 Share in total freight transport: 2% (Vietnam- 18% & China- 14%).
 Under National Waterways Act, 2016, 106 new waterways have
been declared as National Waterways (NWs), total number of NWs
in the country to 111.
 Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI): mandated to develop
and maintain infrastructure for fairway, navigational aids and
terminals.
 The Inland Vessels Act 2021: to bring uniformity in the application
of the law relating to inland waterways navigation within the
country; to utilise the potential of multi-modal transport
Page 5 of 5
GS Foundation 2024
ecosystem; make the legislative framework user-friendly; and

promote ease of doing business.
 Maritime India Vision 2030: under this, IWAI aims to
operationalize 23 waterways by enhancing terminal and allied
infrastructure, navigational aids, and RIS provisioning.
 Reason for underdeveloped waterways: lack of funds; Inadequate
terminal facilities, inadequate supporting infrastructure, poor
development of an IT platform for terminal operating systems, no
multimodal connectivity; shallow water depths, bridges with low
vertical clearance, difficulty in navigation
 Government Initiatives: Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP); “Ro-Ro”
services commenced on NW-2 (River Brahmaputra); Central Road
Fund (Amendment) Bill→ 2.5% proceeds to National waterways;
Gati Shakti National Master Plan- to boost multi-Modal
Connectivity,
 Way forward: streamline the governance of inland waterways;
develop measures for year-round navigation; international inland
waterways (Kaladan Multimodal project).

Eco-13-D6-RAILWAYS-Shipping-Ports

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Eco-13-D6-RAILWAYS-Shipping-Ports

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Page 1 of 5

2. Railways: General Benefits:

4. New Developments: Privatization in Railways:

4. High Speed Railways System:

5. Dedicated Freight Corridor→

6. Railway Sector Reforms:

SHIPPING AND PORTS

3. Port Management Models:

4. Steps taken by government:

ecosystem; make the legislative framework user-friendly; and

You might also like