Swiss expertise for Indian Railways! Collaboration with Switzerland firms for tunnelling works on Rishikesh-Karan Prayag, Udhampur-Srinagar projects

Swiss expertise for Indian Railways! Collaboration with Switzerland firms for tunnelling works on Rishikesh-Karan Prayag, Udhampur-Srinagar projects

Swiss tunneling expertise for Indian Railways! The Indian Railways has joined hands with Swiss firms for tunnelling works in multiple projects, including the Rishikesh-Karna Prayag New Railway Line and the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link, as per information shared by Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in the Rajya Sabha.

According to a PTI report, in response to a question by BJP MP Vijay Pal Singh Tomar, the minister stated that there is a proposal for a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) of the Swiss Confederation and the Ministry of Railways to enhance technological cooperation in the railway sector.

The collaboration between Indian Railways and Swiss firms will encompass various areas such as rolling stock, railway infrastructure, rail safety, train scheduling and operation improvement, multimodal transport, new technologies and innovation, as well as any other area mutually identified.

Tomar’s inquiry focused on the MoU between Indian Railways and its Swiss counterpart to boost operational efficiency. He also inquired about measures taken by the government to collaborate with the Swiss counterpart in utilizing existing technology, specifically in the areas of the hub and spoke model and advanced tunnelling technology.

Vaishnaw responded by stating that Indian Railways’ central public sector enterprises have partnered with Swiss firms for tunnelling projects, including the Rishikesh-Karna Prayag New Railway Line and the Udampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link.

The Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) is overseeing the development of the 125-km Rishikesh-Karna Prayag project, while the Indian Railway Construction International Limited (IRCON) is responsible for the Udampur-Srinagar-Baramulla project.

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Last month, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum at Davos, Vaishnaw had expressed interest in collaborating with Swiss railways for their operational efficiency and the hub and spoke model.

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