Central Organisation for Railway Electrification

Central Organisation for Railway Electrification
Company typeSubsidiary of Indian Railways
IndustryRailways, electrification
Founded1979[1]
Headquarters,
India
Area served
India
Key people
Ashwini Vaishnaw (Railway Minister)
Vinay Kumar Tirupati(Board Chairman)
ProductsRailway electrification
OwnerIndian Railways
Websitecore.indianrailways.gov.in

The Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE) is the unit of Indian Railways responsible for electrification of the network. The organisation, founded in 1979,[1] is headquartered in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh. Project units operate in Ambala, Bangalore, Chennai, Secunderabad, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Danapur, and New Jalpaiguri.

CORE headquarters has Electrical, Signal and Telecommunications (S&T), Civil Engineering, Stores, Personnel, Vigilance and Finance departments headed by Chief Project Directors.

Indian Railways had electrified 64,080 route kilometres (rkm) which is 96.59% of the total broad gauge network of Indian Railways (66,343 rkm, including Konkan Railway) by 1 August 2024.[2] Indian Railway aimed to electrify all of its broad gauge network by March 2024[needs update]. The entire electrified mainline rail network in India uses 25 kV AC; DC is used only for metros and trams.

History

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1500 V DC

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Railway electrification in India began with the first electric train (1500 V DC), between Bombay Victoria Terminus and Kurla on the Great Indian Peninsula Railway's (GIPR) Harbour Line, on 3 February 1925. Steep grades on the Western Ghats necessitated the introduction of electric traction on the GIPR to Igatpuri on the North East Line and to Pune on the South East Line. 1500 V DC traction was introduced on the suburban section of the Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway between Colaba and Borivili on 5 January 1928, and between Madras Beach and Tambaram of the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway on 11 May 1931, to meet growing traffic needs. The last sections of 1500 V DC in India, from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Mumbai to Panvel and Thane to Vashi, were upgraded to 25 kV AC in April 2016.[3]

3000 V DC

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The electrification of the Howrah-Burdwan section of the Eastern Railway zone at 3000 V DC was completed in 1958. The first 3000 V DC EMU service began on the Howrah-Sheoraphuli section on 14 December 1957. The last section of 3000 V DC in India, from Howrah to Burdwan, was upgraded to 25 kV AC in 1968.[4]

25 kV AC

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25 kV AC railway electrification emerged as an economical form of electrification as a result of research and trials in Europe, particularly on French Railways (SNCF). Indian Railways decided to adopt the 25 kV AC system of electrification as a standard in 1957, with SNCF as their consultant in the early stages, later taken over by the "50 c/s Group". The joint venture was founded in 1954 by several European railway manufacturers and was dedicated to the development and construction of locomotives powered by 50 Hz alternating current. It arranged the supply contracts for the WAM-1, WAG-1 and WAG-3 locomotives and their spare parts.[citation needed]

The first section electrified with the 25 kV AC system was Raj Kharswan–Dongoaposi, on the South Eastern Railway zone, and the first electric train ran on 15 December 1959. The first 25 kV AC EMUs, for Kolkata suburban service, was introduced in September 1962.[citation needed]

Organisation

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The electrification office was established in Kolkata as the Project Office for Railway Electrification (PORE) in 1951 when electrification of the Howrah–Burdwan section of the Eastern Railway began. A general manager headed the Railway Electrification Organisation, established in Kolkata in 1959. In 1961, the Northern Railway zone electrification office (headed by an engineer-in-chief) was established in Allahabad for the electrification of the MughalsaraiNew Delhi section. Following the 1978 J. Raj Committee report, several electrification projects were included and a railway-electrification headquarters was established. Since most of the electrification projects were in Central India and South India, the electrification headquarters was established in Nagpur under an additional general manager from 1982 to 1984. The headquarters was moved to Allahabad under the additional general manager in January 1985 and was renamed Central Organisation for Railway Electrification (CORE). A general manager was appointed in July 1987.[citation needed]

Electrification progress

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Trend of Railway Electrification Commissioning in India[2][5]
Period Newly electrified (rkm) Cumulative (rkm)
whole period annualised
1925-1947 388 18 388
1947-1951 0 0 388
1951-1956 141 28 529
1956-1961 216 43 745
1961-1966 1,678 336 2,423
1966-1969 814 271 3,237
1969-1974 953 191 4,190
1974-1978 533 133 4,723
1978-1980 195 65 4,918
1980-1985 1,522 304 6,440
1985-1990 2,812 562 9,252
1990-1992 1,557 519 10,809
1992-1997 2,708 542 13,517
1997-2002 2,484 621 16,001
2002-2007 1,810 362 17,811
2007-2008 502
−168
334 18,145
2008-2009 797 797 18,942
2009-2010 1,117 1,117 20,059
2010-2014 741 185 21,801
2014-2015 1,176 1,176 22,997
2015-2016 1,502 1,502 24,479
2016-2017 1,646 1,646 26,125
2017-2018 4,087 4,087 30,212
2018-2019 5,276 5,276 35,488
2019-2020 4,378 4,378 39,866
2020-2021 6,015 6,015 45,881
2021-2022 6,366 6,366 52,247
2022-2023 6,565 6,565 58,812
2023-2024 4,644 4,644 63,456

Status

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Electrified network by state (broad gauge only)
as of 1 October 2024[2]
State Total
route km
Electrified
route km
% Electrification
(BG to BG)
Andhra Pradesh 3,841 3,841 100.00
Arunachal Pradesh 12 0 0.00
Assam 2,533 1,367 53.97
Bihar 3,802 3,802 100.00
Chandigarh 16 16 100.00
Chhattisgarh 1,279 1,279 100.00
Delhi 183 183 100.00
Goa 186 164 88.17
Gujarat 4,087 3,933 96.23
Haryana 1,780 1,780 100.00
Himachal Pradesh 67 67 100.00
Jammu & Kashmir 396 396 100.00
Jharkhand 2,577 2,577 100.00
Karnataka 3,615 3,457 95.63
Kerala 1,046 1,046 100.00
Madhya Pradesh 4,944 4,944 100.00
Maharashtra 5,815 5,815 100.00
Manipur 13 0 0.00
Meghalaya 9 9 100.00
Mizoram 2 0 0.00
Nagaland 11 11 100.00
Odisha 2,901 2,901 100.00
Puducherry 21 21 100.00
Punjab 2,288 2,288 100.00
Rajasthan 5,961 5,805 97.38
Sikkim 0 0 N/A
Tamil Nadu 3,921 3,659 93.32
Telangana 1,923 1,923 100.00
Tripura 267 153 57.30
Uttar Pradesh 8,546 8,546 100.00
Uttarakhand 347 347 100.00
West Bengal 4,024 3,914 97.27
Total (BG) 66,413 64,244 96.73
Electrified network by zone (broad gauge only)
as of 1 October 2024[2]
Zone Total
route km
Electrified
route km
% Electrification
(BG to BG)
CR 4,002 4,002 100.00
ER 2,809 2,809 100.00
ECR 4,169 4,169 100.00
ECOR 3,000 3,000 100.00
NR 7,272 7,272 100.00
NCR 3,286 3,286 100.00
NER 3,225 3,225 100.00
NFR 4,124 2,707 65.64
NWR 5,550 5,355 96.49
SR 5,063 4,801 94.83
SCR 6,225 6,128 98.44
SER 2,753 2,753 100.00
SECR 2,428 2,428 100.00
SWR 3,340 3,257 97.51
WR 5,268 5,153 97.82
WCR 3,111 3,111 100.00
KRCL 738 738 100.00
Kolkata Metro 50 50 100.00
Total (BG) 66,413 64,244 96.73

Modernisation

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Equipment

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To reduce maintenance costs and improve the reliability of power supply systems, CORE has adopted state-of-the-art technology: cast resin transformers, SF6 circuit breakers or vacuum switchgear, long-creepage solid-core insulators and PTFE-neutral sections. Eight-wheeled, self-propelled OHE inspection cars have been introduced to improve maintenance, and an OHE recording car has been requested to monitor the performance of overhead equipment.[citation needed]

SCADA

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The 220-132-25 kV power-supply network for electrification extends along the track for about 200 to 300 kilometres (120 to 190 mi). It is remotely controlled from the division control centre to ensure an uninterrupted power supply to the track overhead equipment. In electrification projects, a microprocessor-based supervisory control and data acquisition control system is replacing the earlier electro-mechanical Strowger system of remote-control equipment. SCADA can telemeter voltage, current, maximum demand and power factor in real-time, enabling control of maximum demand and electrical cost. The system also provides automatic troubleshooting and isolation of faulty sections.[citation needed]

Other organisations involved in electrification

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Some electrification projects have been entrusted to other agencies like RVNL (2624 RKM), IRCON (170 RKM), PGCIL (597 RKM) and RITES (170 RKM) under the Ministry of Railways, and small electrification projects are carried out by zonal railways.[citation needed]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Home page", Central Organisation for Railway Electrification, Ministry of Railways, Government of India, retrieved 24 May 2021
  2. ^ a b c d Status of Railway Electrification (as on 01.10.2024) (PDF) (Report). Indian Railways. 12 October 2024. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  3. ^ "Central Railway completes DC to AC conversion". Hindustan Times. 11 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  4. ^ "Indian Railways" (PDF). indianrailways.gov.in. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  5. ^ "Railway Electrification". indianrailways.gov.in.
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