Hindustan Times

December 21, 2020

Special refrigerated vans may be set aside for transporting the vaccine or luggage compartments may be modified into temperature-controlled units. Refrigerated vans have the capacity to carry 17 tonnes of cargo, with a deep freezer capable of handling temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius.


India Railways’ vast network may be pressed into service for large-scale transport of a Covid-19 vaccine that’s eventually approved by the Centre. The national carrier is considering the possibility of deploying its specially designed refrigerated vans for the purpose and is in talks with several ministries to finalize a plan

Special refrigerated vans may be set aside for transporting the vaccine or luggage compartments may be modified into temperature-controlled units. Refrigerated vans have the capacity to carry 17 tonnes of cargo, with a deep freezer capable of handling temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius.

The vans have a capacity to carry 5 tonnes of frozen items and an additional capacity of 12 tonnes to carry perishable cargo like fruit and vegetables at 40°C temperature.

“We are discussing possibilities, no final decision has been taken but we are continuously in touch with the concerned ministries for the same and wherever the need arises, railways will come forward and help the country. We are having continuous discussion over this,” railway board chairman and CEO VK Yadav said

The national carrier also uses modified refrigerated luggage compartments with a temperature-controlled chamber of 2/4 tonnes capacity for carrying perishable items.

At present, Indian Railways operates refrigerated parcel vans on selected mail express trains for carrying perishable cargo like fruits, vegetables, dairy products, fish and meat. In August, the transporter also began setting up a seamless national cold supply chain for perishables lie milk, meat and fish on Kisan Rail trains.

According to the railway ministry, refrigerated parcel vans with a capacity of carrying 17 tonnes of highly perishable freight have been designed,developed and procured through Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala. At present, Indian Railway has a fleet of nine such vans. These vans are booked on a round-trip basis, and cost 1.5 times the normal freight carriers

“There has been internal discussion in production units on how to transport the vaccine as it seems logical for large- scale transportation. We have the necessary infrastructure, we have 10 {refrigerated parcel vans}at the moment that have two compartments including one for ultra-low temperatures, but it can easily be scaled by modifying our existing coaches. We are ready to do it once we are approached by the government and the final nod is given,” a senior ministry official said, requesting anonymity.

“Railway coaches can be modified either to directly implant boxed cold storage vans inside them, by keeping constant power supply etc, or the entire coach can be redesigned to have one. The Linke-Hofmann-Busch coaches in Rajdhani trains, used in pantry cars etc, have already had some modifications for cold storage. Railways has lot of coach repair and design production units and workshops. It is not difficult to redesign the thermodynamics of a rail coach and insulate it to colder temperatures. It is efficient and can be supplied to any part of the country,” a second official explained.

Indian Railways also uses Reefer (ventilated, insulated) rail containers. At present railways has 98 ventilated and insulated containers with a capacity of 12 tonnes per container and a rake composition of 80 containers that have been procured through its subsidiary Container Corporation of India (CONCOR).

Also Read: Eight promising Covid-19 vaccines end year in hope

Reefers facilitate the movement of cargo that requires a strict temperature-controlled environment. At present, CONCOR provides reefer services.

According to the ministry, Indian Railways has “temperature controlled perishable cargo centres” for cold storage Ghazipur Ghat (UP), New Azadpur (Adarsh Nagar, Delhi) and Raja ka Talab (UP) under CONCOR’s Kisan Vision Project. Another project is under construction at Lasalgaon, Nashik (Maharashtra). Approval has also been granted to Central Railside Warehousing Corporation to develop temperature controlled storages at Fatuha in Bihar and Mancheswar in Odisha.

The Centre is making preparations for setting up a cold storage chain for the Covid-19 vaccine that will eventually be approved for use in India, and is finalising transport arrangements with top airlines to deliver the antidote to the viral disease, HT reported on December 7. The aviation ministry has also held a round of meetings with airlines on transport logistic.

Link:https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/govt-to-explore-railways-infra-for-covid19-vaccine-transportation/story-uXajRjNILZY7JLm1NOmbYI.html 

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