Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for infrastructure projects worth more than ₹35,000 crore in Gujarat. He also dedicated three completed sections of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC) to the nation. The three stretches cover 326 km and were developed at a cost of over ₹20,700 crore. Modi also flagged off new freight services and a passenger train between Tanda Road and Vadodara. The development marks a major step towards strengthening India’s freight transportation network.
Direct Port Connectivity to Boost Trade and Reduce Logistics Costs
The newly inaugurated sections include New Sanand North-New Makarpura, New Umbergaon-New Saphale and New Saphale-New JNPT. The WDFC will connect Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra with Dadri in Uttar Pradesh. It will also intersect with the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC), creating a strong dedicated freight network across the country. The EDFC connects Sonnagar in West Bengal with Ludhiana in Punjab. Together, the two corridors will improve the movement of goods across major industrial and commercial centres.
The Western Dedicated Freight Corridor will provide a direct rail link to Jawaharlal Nehru Port. This connection will help industries move import and export goods more quickly and efficiently. The government expects the corridor to strengthen links between major industrial hubs and ports. It will also reduce logistics expenses and ease pressure on Mumbai’s busy railway network. These improvements could further support India’s trade and supply chain efficiency.
Over 5 Lakh Freight Train Trips Recorded
The Indian Railways has already made significant progress on the dedicated freight network. According to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the project had not seen any physical construction before 2014. The Narendra Modi-led government addressed several long-pending issues and accelerated work on the corridors. The railways also continue to expand capacity through multi-tracking on the Dankuni-Sonnagar section. With the latest sections becoming operational, the country’s 2,843-km dedicated freight network is now fully functional.
The railways have handled around 5.2 lakh freight train trips on operational sections of the Dedicated Freight Corridor as of August. The network currently handles an average of nearly 435 freight trains every day. It has transported goods equivalent to about 658 billion gross tonne-kilometres. The network has also recorded around 360 billion net tonne-kilometres. The government expects the dedicated freight system to further improve cargo movement and strengthen India’s logistics infrastructure.
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