New Delhi, July 28: Indian Railways has taken a significant step to strengthen railway infrastructure and enhance network capacity by approving an electric traction system upgrade in the Parbhani-Mudkhed double line section of the Nanded Division under South Central Railway. The announcement was made by the Ministry of Railways on Tuesday.
According to the ministry, this project, costing ₹163 crore, will replace the existing 1×25 kV electric traction system with a more advanced 2×25 kV system. The work will cover a stretch of 164 track kilometers.
Additionally, the infrastructure related to power supply will be modernized to handle the increasing electrical load.
The Parbhani-Mudkhed rail segment is part of the strategically important Highly Utilized Network (HUN) Route-9, connecting Ajmer, Indore, Khandwa, Akola, Purna, Mudkhed, Secunderabad, Mahbubnagar, and Dhone. This route is considered crucial for both passenger and freight trains.
The ministry stated that the new traction system will provide a more robust power supply for train operations, enhancing freight capacity on this section and better supporting the operation of high-speed trains like the Vande Bharat Express. This project will also aid Indian Railways in achieving its target of transporting 3,000 million tons of freight by 2029-30.
According to the ministry, this initiative is part of Indian Railways’ comprehensive plan to modernize electrical infrastructure and improve operational efficiency on the country’s busiest rail routes.
Earlier this month, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed the Lok Sabha that India has emerged as the country with the largest electrified railway network in the world. Currently, 99.6 percent of the country’s broad gauge rail network has been electrified. In this regard, India is only behind Switzerland (100 percent), although Switzerland’s rail network is significantly smaller than India’s.
The minister noted that India has surpassed countries like China (82 percent), Spain (67 percent), Japan (64 percent), France (60 percent), and the United Kingdom (39 percent) in terms of railway electrification.
He emphasized that Indian Railways has completed one of the fastest railway electrification campaigns in the world in mission mode. Between 2014 and 2026, 48,072 route kilometers of railway lines were electrified, compared to just 21,801 route kilometers in the previous 60 years.
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