Prayagraj,

April 25 (HS): North Central Raiilway Electrical Department closes FY 2025–26

with a landmark year of financial discipline, green innovation, technological

modernisation, and record safety performance. Against a backdrop of India’s

expanding rail network, the department achieved 100% budget utilisation,

unlocked Rs. 670 Crore in lifetime maintenance savings, reduced CO₂ emissions by 11,200

MT, and successfully trialled 160 kmph OHE infrastructure for the Vande Bharat

corridor — all while earning the Bureau of Energy Efficiency’s prestigious

Certificate of Merit.

Financial

Execution & Economic Engineering: The department achieved complete budget

utilisation, absorbing Rs. 269.19 Crore across both plan heads with no funds

lapsed. This disciplined execution funded critical infrastructure expansion,

safety upgrades, and fleet modernisation simultaneously. The headline economic

achievement of the year was the harmonic filter elimination programme at ELS

Kanpur. By removing harmonic filter assemblies from IGBT locomotives, the

department:

Simplified

locomotive architecture, reducing maintenance complexity.

Achieved

14,601 kWh in annual energy savings per locomotive.

Generated

Rs. 670 Crore in lifetime maintenance cost savings.

Avoided

Rs. 611 Crore in procurement costs, with a projected Rs. 3,750 Crore in

cumulative savings over the codal life of the fleet.

This

innovation earned the department the Certificate of Merit at the National

Energy Conservation Awards 2025, administered by the Bureau of Energy

Efficiency (BEE).

2.

Green Horizon: Renewable Traction & Net-Zero Infrastructure: Rooftop Solar

Expansion

21.7

MWp total installed solar capacity across the NCR network.

9

MWp newly commissioned in FY 2025–26 alone.

133.3

Lakh Units of pure solar energy generated this year, directly displacing

fossil-fuel-based traction power.

The

140 MW Round-The-Clock (RTC) Agreement: A landmark 25-year Power Purchase

Agreement was signed for 140 MW of Round-The-Clock Renewable Power. This

agreement is projected to deliver 981 MU annually, driving an 8 Lakh MT annual

CO₂ reduction and enabling

fully uninterrupted, decarbonised traction supply.

First-in-India

Sustainability Milestones: Drone-Enabled Solar Cleaning: The first-ever demonstration

on Indian Railways of drone technology for automated solar panel cleaning,

piloted at Subedarganj Station (SFG).

Shunya/Shunya+

Certifications: 09 railway buildings across NCR awarded the BEE Shunya/Shunya+

net-zero energy label, confirming total operational energy neutrality.

3.

Safety Shield: Protecting Trains, Yards & Personnel - On-Track Safety —

KAVACH

KAVACH

anti-collision fitment completed in 161 electric locomotives, covering 100% of

available WAP7 locomotives.

Maintenance

Safety — LOTTO

Lock-Out/Tag-Out

(LOTTO) boxes installed on all six OHE lines at ELS Jhansi, ensuring zero

electrical accidents through fail-safe isolation protocols.

Yard

Surveillance

High-resolution

Panomera CCTV systems deployed on 20m High-Mast Towers, providing 360-degree

interference-free yard monitoring.

Passenger

Safety — Fire Suppression

Automated

Aerosol/Fire Ball Suppression Systems installed inside the control panels of 59

escalators and 86 lifts across the NCR network, pre-emptively neutralising electrical

fire risks.

4.

Elevating the Passenger Experience: 8 modern lifts commissioned at high-traffic

hubs including Subedarganj, Kanpur Anwarganj, Datia, Orai, and Mathura.

3

new escalators commissioned at Gwalior station.

Aerosol/Fire

Ball Suppression Systems installed across 59 escalators and 86 lifts, providing

invisible but critical fire protection.

5.

Smart Loco Operations: Digitising the Pilot Experience: Three digital modules

were deployed to transform how locomotives are operated, monitored, and

crew-managed:

Module

1: Chalak Mitra & Digital Circulars - Manual acknowledgment systems

replaced with a digital dissemination platform. Circulars are accessible via

app with auto-generated MCQ assessments, enabling Crew Loco Inspectors to

target data-driven counselling.

Module

2: Automated Braking Profiles: Upgraded from physical floppy analysis to RTIS

per-second data integration. The system automatically detects stoppages,

captures signal data, and generates comprehensive braking profiles for critical

safety reviews.

Module

3: Biometric KIOSKs: Breath Analyser-integrated KIOSKs installed at JAB, AF,

and BAD stations for automated Sign-ON/OFF, eliminating manual logs and

precisely tracking actual duty hours.

6.

Mission Raftaar: Energising the 160 KMPH Corridor: Rapid infrastructure

expansion was executed to prepare the Agra–Kanpur corridor for 160 kmph

operations:

December

2025: Makkhanpur & Karchana 2x25 kV SSPs commissioned.

January

2026: Panki & Sholaka SSPs commissioned.

February/March

2026: Maitha & Kurasti Kalan SSPs commissioned.

The

cumulative milestone: a successful 160 kmph OHE fitness speed trial was

conducted using a Vande Bharat train set in the Tundla–Mandrak section in

October 2025, validating the infrastructure for high-speed operations.

7.

Critical Infrastructure: Bridging the Lifelines: Two high-stakes 132kV

transmission line operations were completed with precision engineering:

Active

Expressway Crossing: Completed the 132kV transmission line crossing over an

active expressway. Seven wires were strung in 22 minutes to minimise traffic disruption.

NH-19

Double-Circuit Crossing (Firozabad): Executed the long-pending critical 132kV

double-circuit crossing over National Highway-19, ensuring uncompromised

statutory electrical clearances while maintaining safe, uninterrupted highway

operations.

9.

Hardening the Grid: System Reliability & Upgrades - Three targeted

interventions delivered the 50% year-on-year reduction in internal TRD

failures:

Intervention

1: Resolving Low-Frequency Oscillations (Kanpur-GMC) - The high-density

Kanpur-GMC section suffered from persistent Low-Frequency Oscillations (LFOs).

Solution: 132kV supply of both transformers was aligned to the same phase and

relay settings were optimised, completely eliminating LFO detentions.

Intervention

2: Proactive Component Replacement - Complete replacement of failure-prone

NICCO make Silver Brazed Contact Wire across the JHS–BINA section — totalling

361 TKM replaced in FY 2025–26 alone — eliminated a chronic source of system

failures.

Intervention

3: Operational Mobility - 5.2 TKM of track converted to High-Rise OHE at ICD

Dadri, enabling seamless double-stack container movement and removing a

longstanding operational constraint.

10.

The Road Ahead: FY 2026–27 Benchmarks: Building on a record-breaking year, the

department has set three ambitious goals for FY 2026–27:

Goal

1: Continuous Improvement in Reliability: Target a further 5% reduction in

Electric Loco failures (ownership basis) compared to the record lows achieved

in FY 2025–26.

Goal

2: Optimising Human Endurance: Achieve a further 5% reduction in cases of Loco

Pilots working beyond 12 and 14-hour duty limits.

Goal

3: Fleet Modernisation & Amenities

100%

KAVACH fitment for all allocated quantities.

100%

provision of waterless urinals in locomotives.

100%

upgrade to twin-beam LED headlights across the remaining fleet.

The

North Central Railway (NCR) Electrical Department is responsible for traction

power supply, rolling stock maintenance, passenger amenity infrastructure, and

energy management across the NCR network. In FY 2025–26, the department

operated under the theme of “Powering Progress” — delivering excellence across

safety, sustainability, and speed.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi