The Indian Railways has decided to run all trains on the heritage line by hydrogen-powered engines in an effort to promote ‘green’ initiatives. The first of these engines are expected by the end of the year while all 38 trains will likely be transformed in the next two years.
“We are developing a prototype of a hydrogen fuel-based train at the Northern Railway workshop. By the end of this year, we are aiming that the first train under this will start running. In the next two years, the lines will be completely transformed and will run on hydrogen-powered engines,” an official said requesting anonymity.
There are 38 trains running in eight heritage sections across India. According to the official, at least one hydrogen-powered engine will be introduced in each section and the number will slowly be increased.
Matheran Hill Railway under Central Railway is about 20 km long and has two trains at present. Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is 88.6 km long with nine trains, and is running under the Northeast Frontier Railway.
The longest among these in terms of distance is Kangra Valley under Northern Railway, covering 164 km. As the name suggests, it runs through the sub-Himalayan region of Kangra Valley and has seven trains. Apart from this, the Northern Railway also runs Kalka Shimla Railway, which is 96.5 km long and has seven trains.
There are two heritage sections in the Western Railway – 62.7 km long Bilmora Waghai and 58 km long Mhow Patalpani. Both have two trains each. The Nilgiri Mountain Railway, under Southern Railway, is the shortest distance among all. It is 46 km long and has eight trains. The 52 km long Marwar-Devgarh line, under the North Western Railway, has only one train.
There are two gauges under the heritage line. Except Marwar-Devgarh, Mhow Patalpani and Nilgiri – which are metre gauge – the rest are all narrow gauge.
Addressing the nation on Independence Day in 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the National Hydrogen Mission with an aim to make India a hub for the production and export of green hydrogen. India is at a crucial juncture in terms of its energy landscape and green hydrogen has a critical role to play to make the country self-reliant and energy-independent.
On January 4, the union cabinet approved the National Green Hydrogen Mission. The initial outlay for the mission will be Rs 19,744 crore.
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