Railside Warehousing Corp on diversification track

The public sector undertaking with the ministry of consumer affairs is planning to set up six logistic parks, including the two alongside the ambitious dedicated freight corridor, at the cost of R1, 500 crore, Central Railside Warehousing Corporation MD Vinod Asthana told FE.

The company is in talks with several state governments, including Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Orissa, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, for building the logistics hubs.

At present the warehousing corporation runs 18 railside warehouses and handles 3 million tonnes of cargo every year. Along with logistics parks, its plan for cold storages has also taken off. It is building cold-chain-based warehouses at Dankuni in West Bengal and Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh.

“We plan to build 20 cold-chain-based warehouse services with facilities such as temperature-controlled options at all major locations in the country. We are looking for joint ventures with private companies as well,” Asthana said.

The diversification drive of the corporation doesn't stop here. The PSU has also chalked out plans of becoming a third-party logistics provider, which offers integrated logistics solutions.