Gujarat: PM Modi Inaugurates India's First Automobile In-Plant Railway Siding By Maruti Suzuki

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated India's first automobile in-plant railway siding project by Maruti Suzuki in Gujarat's Mehsana district, on 12 March.

The project, located at Hansalpur, was inaugurated virtually from Ahmedabad, as per a report by The Economic Times.

During the same event, Prime Minister Modi also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for railway projects worth Rs 85,000 crore, including the launch of 10 new Vande Bharat trains, from the Sabarmati area of Ahmedabad.

He also visited the dedicated freight corridor’s operation control centre.

Implemented under the PM Gati Shakti mission, the project is a collaboration between the Gujarat government, Indian Railways, and Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL), with a total cost of Rs 976 crore.

The project was executed by Bahucharaji Rail Corporation Limited, a special-purpose vehicle formed with the participation of Gujarat Railway Infrastructure Development Corporation, Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation, and MSIL, with equities of 49 per cent, 29 per cent, and 26 per cent respectively.

This initiative by Maruti Suzuki aims to increase the use of railways for dispatching finished cars from 26 per cent to 40 per cent annually, resulting in savings of 50,000 truck trips, 35 million litres of fuel, and a reduction of 1,650 tonnes of carbon emissions per year.

As of February, Maruti Suzuki has already dispatched approximately 1.8 million cars by railway.