Western Railways pushing “green corridor” project at Ekta Nagar Railways station in Gujarat

Ekta Nagar: In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pledge to make India a carbon-neutral nation, Western Railways is pushing a “green corridor” project at the newly built Ekta Nagar Railways station in Gujarat.

The railways are developing the entire 6 to 7-kilometre distance from the station to the Statue of Unity (SOU) in the Narmada district into a green corridor to provide seamless connectivity to people visiting the 182-metre statue of Unity, dedicated to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, as part of the project.

The railways have undertaken a number of initiatives as part of the “green corridor” project, including the renting and leasing of electric vehicles, the installation of EV charging stations, and the operation and management of parking lots. “The railways had already floated a tender for setting up the EV charging points, which will be closed down on February 28th,” Purushottam Kumar, Divisional Commercial Manager of Vododara division, said.

Kumar stated that under the contract, the private firm will set up 51 EV charging stations and will also ply its own electric vehicles.

A private entity will also manage the station’s parking space, which is approximately 10,500 square feet. “The tenure of contact will be 5 years and it will generate approximately a revenue of Rs. 18.27 lacs per annum” he informed.

Speaking about the importance of the project, he said, “Plying green vehicles in the SOU area will ensure a green corridor that will help the entire area be free from pollution and harmful gas emissions.”

Outlining the project, the Chief spokesperson of Western Railway, Sumit Thakur, said that these kinds of initiatives not only reduce the operational cost of the railways but are good for the environment in the entire area as well.

According to the railways, the station is also equipped with LED lights and star-rated electrical appliances in order to save electricity.

The station also has water management arrangements through rainwater harvesting, a sewage treatment plant, eco-waterless urinals, and drip irrigation. Green waste that has been separated at the source will be reused to produce fertiliser and reduce waste.

Inaugurated by the Prime Minister last year, the Kevadiya station is the country’s first railway station with a “green building” certification by the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) since its inception.

Indian Railways, the world’s fourth largest railway network in terms of size, has initiated a multi-pronged approach to go green and decarbonise—from increasing its sourcing of renewable energy (RE) to electrifying its traction network and reducing its energy consumption.

According to a recent report, railways set a target to become the world’s first net-zero emission railway by 2030.

The report says if that happens, it could lead to an annual emissions reduction of at least 15 million tonnes of CO2, which could help meet 5 percent of India’s Nationally Determined Contributions target, as well as save Rs 17,000 crore in fuel costs and other savings per year.

The railways ministry has installed solar panels at over 960 stations and is using solar power to meet the energy needs of railway stations.

Bids have also been submitted for 198 MW of solar panels to be installed on the rooftops of 550 railway stations. The railways are also making rapid progress toward becoming the world’s first green railways, with a tentative goal of completing 100% electrification of broad-gauge routes by December 2023