The Role of Indian Railways and the Mission of Decarbonization: A Study of Electrification Program

The Indian Railways globally occupies the fourth position in terms of the total network of 1,23,235 kms with 95,979 kms of running track operating 22,000 trains running daily and 10,500 locomotives and the Indian Railways, therefore, has a massive carbon footprint. But the fact is Indian railways account for 4% of greenhouse emissions out of the total transport sector contributing to 12% of the country’s emissions. Meanwhile, the current UN’s COP26 summit and the commitment of the Paris agreement drew our attention to the growing danger of greenhouse emissions and fossil fuels. This has improved our commitment to step up our efforts toward renewable energy and transition off fossil fuels. In this regard, ever since 2017, the Indian Railways has been pursuing a multi-prolonged approach to green and decarbonization by introducing electrification of traction networks and the possibility of transition to solar and wind energy. The purpose is to mitigate the spike in the consumption of diesel fuel and the operating costs. The Indian Railways, therefore, has committed to an ambitious mission referred to as 41K aimed to save Rs. 41,000 crore by switching to electric traction and use of LED lights on station premises and administrative buildings. Further, the Indian Railways has a plan to fully electrify its tracks by 2023, and committed to net-zero emissions by 2030. The Indian Railways has set out a grand target to accomplish “Green Railway” by 2030 and has taken several major initiatives toward mitigation of global warming and combating the consequences of climate change. The objective of this chapter is to trace the concerted efforts of Indian railways in combating CO2 emissions by implementing a complete electrification program. The study analyzes the progress of electrification post-1991 up to 2021 from a governance and institutional perspective. Over time, the Indian Railways shift to electrification is expected to speed up the power sector’s decarbonization to improve the environment. Besides, there is a multi-stakeholder collaboration between the government and the industry to create clean, resilient, and equitable energy and mobility systems.