Freight Operations – Indian Railways

1. Definition & Core Objective

Freight Operation is the commercial movement of goods (not passengers) by rail for reward.
Core objectives:

• Provide cost-effective, energy-efficient, bulk logistics backbone to the nation
• Generate the “internal surplus” that cross-subsidises passenger services (every ₹ 1 loss on passenger ≈ ₹ 0.65 profit on freight)

2. Technical Information

2.1 Freight Stock

2.2 Freight Train Classification (Operating Manual 2023)

• Goods (Full): End-to-end rake, booked & billed as single unit
• Mini Goods: 21–40 wagons, run on priority path
• Conventional: < 21 wagons, attached to any passing goods train
• Roll-on-Roll-off (RO-RO): Loaded road trucks moved on flat wagons
• Meri Saheli & other time-tabled parcel: ≤ 110 km/h

2.3 Permissible Axle-Load Evolution

• 1957: 20.3 t (BG)
• 1967: 22.9 t (HS wagons)
• 2002: 25 t (CASNUB-22 HS)
• 2018: 30 t trials – DFC & selected IR routes
• 2022: 25 t allowed on ~2,500 km of “Heavy Haul” routes (Jharsuguda–Barbil, Kirandul–Vizag, etc.)

2.4 Braking

• Air-Brake: Twin-pipe graduated release (GR) 5 kg/cm²; adopted since 1988-89; 100 % fleet now air-braked.
• Dynamic/Regenerative: 5,500 HP WAG-9 & 9H, 6,000 HP WAG-12 supply 28-30 % of braking effort.

2.5 Couplers & Loading Density

• CBC (centre-buffer-coupler) + slack-less draw-gear → permitted 8.25 t/m linear load → 6,000 t trailing behind single WAG-9.
• CC+8: Conventional load 5,000 t; CC+9 (5,400 t) on DFC & identified routes (2022).

3. Important Facts & Figures (2023-24)

4. Historical Milestones

• 1854: First goods train (Roorkee–Piran Kaliyar) – 2 wagons of clay.
• 1956: Introduction of 4-wheeler “B” class wagons (12.2 t axle).
• 1967: HS (Heavy-Scale) 22.9 t axle freight bogie designed by RDSO.
• 1982: BOXN – India’s first high-sided 8-wheeler air-brake wagon.
• 1987: Freight marketing separated from Operations – zonal “Chief Commercial Manager (Freight Service)” created.
• 1992: Rake-Exchange system – wagons move without re-loading at junctions.
• 2001: FOIS (Freight Operations Information System) goes live.
• 2006: First 6,000 t “CC+6” rake hauled by three WAG-7.
• 2011: Entry-Load policy (additional 4 t per wagon) on selected routes.
• 2015: Roll-out of 25 t axle-load BOXNHL.
• 2017: First trial of 10,000 t ‘Anaconda’ train (Kirandul–Vizag).
• 2020: Start of Eastern & Western Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFC).
• 2021: “Mission Raftaar” – target to raise average freight speed to 50 km/h by 2030.
• 2023: Gati Shakti multi-modal terminals (30 planned, 12 commissioned).

5. Current Status & Recent Updates (2024)

1. Railway Board re-organised – Member (Infrastructure) renamed Member (T&F) “Track & Freight”.
2. “Hungry for Cargo” campaign – 24×7 freight helpline 139-F, one-stop website freight.indianrailways.gov.in.
3. Rationalised freight rebate (Feb 2024):
   • 15 % discount for incremental traffic beyond FY-23 base
   • 30 % discount for empty flow direction (back-haul)
4. Automatic Freight Rebate System (AFRS) – AI-based distance & commodity linked rebate, no manual sanction.
5. Roll-on-Roll-off (RO-RO) service resumed on Konkan Railway after COVID; now 7 days/week.
6. Western DFC (1,504 km) fully commissioned except 40 km Son-Nagar patch; Eastern DFC (1,337 km) Dadri–Dankuni open.
7. Sidhi-Singrauli & Kirandul-Jagdalur sections upgraded to 25 t axle in Mar 2024.
8. Wagon procurement plan 2024-27: 90,000 wagons (₹ 33,000 cr) – 60 % high-capacity (BCNHL, BOXNHL, BOST).
9. KAVACH ATP being extended to 3,000 Rkm of DFC route for 100 km/h operation.
10. Gati Shakti Cargo App – QR/OTP based gate-entry, real-time rake tracking, piloted at 35 goods sheds.

6. Quick-Recall Points for Exams

• FOIS modules: Management of Rake Inventory (MRI), Terminal Management System (TMS), Control Office Management (COMS), WIS (Wagon Information System).
• Freight terminals: 2,750 goods sheds + 245 private sidings + 55 freight terminals + 30 multimodal logistics parks (under Gati Shakti).
• Freight marketing executives (FMEs): 680 posted in 67 divisions to tap road-to-rail traffic.
• Lead to conversion formula: NTKM = Tonnes loaded × Lead (km).
• Operating ratio 2022-23: 98.14 (every ₹ 100 earnings, ₹ 98.14 spent).
• Rail vs Road cost: IR average 94 p/tonne-km; road 2.0–2.4 ₹/tonne-km for > 500 km lead.
• Energy efficiency: 1 litre of diesel moves 83 tonne-km by rail, 27 tonne-km by 3-axle truck.
• World’s heaviest freight train: 3,000 m length, 10,000 t, 3×WAG-9 on Kirandul-Visakhapatnam section (trial).

7. Practice MCQs

Question:01 What is the current maximum permissible axle-load for BOXNHL wagons on Indian Railways as per 2026 standards?

A) 22.9 tonnes
B) 23.5 tonnes
C) 24.5 tonnes
D) 25 tonnes

Question:02 [The first freight train in India ran in 1854 between which stations?]

A) Mumbai and Thane
B) Roorkee and Piran Kaliyar
C) Howrah and Hooghly
D) Chennai and Arkonam

Question:03 Which of the following commodities forms the largest share of Indian Railways’ freight revenue?

A) Iron ore

B) Cement

C) Coal

D) Food grains

Question:04 The twin-pipe air-brake system on freight stock maintains what nominal brake pipe pressure?

A) 4 kg/cm² (feed pipe 5 kg/cm²)

B) 5 kg/cm² (feed pipe 6 kg/cm²)

C) 6 kg/cm² (feed pipe 5 kg/cm²)

D) 5.5 kg/cm² (feed pipe 6.5 kg/cm²)

Question:05 What was the average lead (distance) of Indian Railways’ freight traffic in 2022-23?

A) 551 km

B) 611 km

C) 671 km

D) 731 km

Question:06 Which organisation developed the HS (Heavy Scale) 22.9 t freight bogie?

A) Indian Railways

B) RDSO (Research Designs & Standards Organisation)

C) BHEL

D) Titagarh Wagons

Question:07 The operating ratio of Indian Railways for the financial year 2022-23 was approximately

A) 94 %

B) 96 %

C) 98 %

D) 100 %

Question:08 Which freight information system module deals with real-time rake inventory?

A) RFM (Rake Flow Manager)

B) MRI (Management of Rake Inventory)

C) FMS (Freight Monitoring System)

D) RIS (Rake Information Suite)

Question:09 What is the maximum designed speed of BOXN-HL wagons?

A) 80 km/h

B) 90 km/h

C) 100 km/h

D) 110 km/h

Question:10 The “Anaconda” freight train is associated with which section?

A) Kirandul–Visakhapatnam (iron-ore circuit)

B) Bilaspur–Katni (coal circuit)

C) Barbil–Banspani (iron-ore circuit)

D) Dalli-Rajhara–Rowghat (iron-ore circuit)

Question:11 As per the 2024 policy, the incremental freight rebate offered for traffic beyond the FY-23 base is

A) 10 %
B) 12 %
C) 15 %
D) 20 %

Question:12 Which of the following is NOT a type of freight train classification?

A) Unit Train
B) Super-Fast Express
C) Manifest Train
D) Block Train

Question:13 The total length of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor is about

A) 1,318 km

B) 1,504 km

C) 1,656 km

D) 1,842 km

Question:14 [The first year of commercial operation of the Roll-on-Roll-off service on Konkan Railway was]

A) 1995

B) 1997

C) 1999

D) 2001

Question:15 What is the tare weight of a BCNHL wagon?

A) 23.5 tonnes
B) 24.8 tonnes
C) 26.0 tonnes
D) 27.2 tonnes

Question:17 [Which module of FOIS is used by Control Offices to monitor rake movement?]

A) TMS
B) COMS
C) RMS
D) CMS

Remember: Freight is the “bread-earner” of Indian Railways; every major infrastructure upgrade (DFC, heavy-haul, 25 t axle, upgraded wagons) is aimed at cutting cost, raising speed and winning traffic back from road.