To promote industrial activities across the country, Indian Railways has commissioned 1,724 km out of 2,843 km of Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) till February 07, 2023. The freight corridor will bring down the logistical cost and will boost the development of new industrial hubs and townships.

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The railways are constructing two Dedicated Freight Corridors – (a) Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) and (b) Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC).

(a) Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC):

The 1,337 km long Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) connects Ludhiana to Sonnagar. So far, only 861 Km has been completed.

(b) Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC):

The 1,506 km long Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC) connects Jawaharlal Nehru Port Terminal (JNPT) to Dadri. Only 863 km has been completed to date.

The four cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Howrah are already linked through the existing Indian Railway Network. The connectivity of Delhi, Mumbai, and the Howrah area will be strengthened further with the commissioning of the DFC project.

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About Dedicated Freight Corridor:

The Ministry of Railways is constructing the Dedicated Freight Corridor to offer higher transport output and carrying capacity. For this, there will be faster transit of freight trains, and running of double stack container trains, and heavy haul trains, which substantially reduce the unit cost of freight transport and save the logistics costs. The project also aims to boost the supply chain for the industries and logistics sectors located in DFC’s catchment areas leading to the growth of EXIM traffic.

The National Industrial Corridor Corporation (NICDC), which falls under the Ministry of Commerce is implementing various projects along the DFC for the development of Integrated Industrial Townships. The development of New Freight terminals, Multimodal Logistics parks, and Inland Container Depots along both the Eastern and Western DFC are in different stages of implementation.