Mumbai: Railway Ministry Gives Nod To Procure 238 AC Rakes Worth Rs 20,000 Crore For Upgrading City’s Suburban Rail

The railway ministry has given its approval for 238 air-conditioned trains, with an estimated cost of Rs 20,000 crore, to enhance Mumbai's suburban rail system.

The AC rakes will be purchased through the Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP) and will replace the non-AC trains currently in use.

The approval for the acquisition of AC rakes came forward on 15 May, by Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Union railway minister, at a high-level meeting with rail officers, reports Hindustan Times.

Despite MUTP-3 and MUTP-3A getting the green signal, it was important that the railway ministry in Delhi gives a go ahead to the authorities here to call tenders for the new AC rakes.

Of the total 238 rakes, plans for procurement indicate that 47 AC rakes with a cost of Rs 3,491 crore will fall under MUTP-3.

Meanwhile, phase 3A of MUTP will see 191 AC rakes being inducted with a cost of Rs 15,802 crore.

The transport projects aim to enhance the suburban rail network by adding various rail projects. Procuring 47 and 191 AC trains, respectively, under both phases of MUTP is a crucial aspect of the plans.

These will be 12-car AC local trains and will have a vestibuled layout with electrical equipment underneath, increasing the carrying capacity.

Unlike the current AC trains, which have equipment at the end of the sixth coach, this design enables a higher passenger count.

Additionally, the trains will be outfitted with automatic smoke alarms and a fire detection system.

According to sources, Railway Minister Vaishnaw has asked for the approval letter to be expedited and it will be sent soon by the Railway Board.

Plans are already being made to call for global tenders in June for the designing, manufacturing, and maintenance of the AC rakes, which will eventually replace the current train fleet in Mumbai.

Additionally, the process of establishing two new car sheds, in Bhivpuri (Karjat) on Central Railway (CR) and Vangaon (Dahanu) on Western Railway (WR) — for the maintenance of these AC local trains would begin simultaneously.

The two new car sheds are being constructed by the Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) — with a sanctioned cost of Rs 2352.77 crore.

MRVC, formed by the Indian Railways and Maharashtra government, designs and executes rail projects in Mumbai.

It is set to receive funding for the MUTP-3 and 3A projects, amounting to a combined total of over Rs 44,600 crore.

During 2022-23, the MUTP projects received a funding of Rs 1,851 crore — with Rs 1,073 crore allocated by the Ministry of Railways and Rs 778 crore contributed by the Maharashtra government.