Green initiatives of the Indian Railways
Q. Which of the following is/are part of the green initiative/s of the Indian Railways?
1) CNG train
2) Solar-panel powered train
3) Solar power plant on stations- Published on 03 Jun 16a. 3
b. 2, 3
c. 1, 2
d. All of the above
ANSWER: All of the above
- With Indian Railways aggressively focusing on renewable energy, India’s first solar panel-fitted train is all set to commence trial runs shortly. What makes this trial run special is that all coaches of the train would be lit from power generated by the rooftop solar panels.
- The solar-panel powered train will be tested on the Jodhpur division of the North Western Railways. The DEMU train which is being used for the trial run has six coaches, with each coach fitted with twelve solar panels.
- Each solar panel will generate 300 watt of electricity, which means 3.6KW of power per coach. This, the Indian Railways says will be enough to provide electricity for lights and fans inside the coach. However, enough power would not be generated to run air-conditioners.
- The solar train is not the only green initiative taken by the Indian Railways. Last year, Indian Railways had introduced India’s first CNG DEMU train on the Rewari-Rohtak section of Northern Railways. The DEMU train runs on dual fuel system – CNG and diesel. Railways have modified the 1,400 HP engine to run on dual fuel – diesel and CNG – through fumigation technology.
- Also, a 1 megawatt solar power plant was set up at Katra station in 2015, a move that can save up to Rs 1 crore annually on energy bills. This is the biggest rooftop solar plant built in Jammu and Kashmir and the largest solar power plant built by Indian Railways.
