Medha train to run on WR line, Rail Board nod awaited

Mumbai: The first indigenously made local train — Medha — will run on the Western Railway (WR) in a month. Western Railways (WR) general manager G.C. Agarwal has said that the train has got its safety clearances and is now waiting for an official nod from the Railway Board. Medha will be the first locally manufactured local train to run on the suburban section.

This is the first Electrical Multiple Train (EMUC) manufactured under the government’s Make In India initiative. The electrical equipment of the train has been manufactured by Hyderabad-based Medha Servo Drives, which is a first in the history of Indian Railways. After undergoing several trails, it has received safety clearance.

Mr Agarwal said, “The chief railway safety officer in Mumbai and the main safety office in Lucknow have both given their safety certificates to Medha train.” He further added, “Currently we are waiting for the railway board’s nod.” After receiving Railway board’s clearance, the Western Railway authorities hope that the train will run on the WR line within a month. Anil Kumar Agarwal, the chief mechanical engineer, said, “There is no problem in the train, and it is built on energy regeneration technology that pulls back the voltage running through the overhead wire back into the system.”

The Medha has undergone stationary trials in Virar and Mumbai Central and the running trials on the Kasara section. The Central Railway (CR) is considering procuring the Medha trains for upcoming Seawoods-Uran section, that is slated to be operationally by 2018.