73 more refurbished passenger coaches to roll out

More broad gauge passenger coaches of select express trains are being upgraded under Project Utkrisht at the Golden Rock Railway Workshop here to enhance amenities inside the compartments.

Engaged in a myriad of activities, including periodic overhaul of broad gauge locomotives, the workshop which was allotted a total number of 105 broad gauge coaches under Project Utkrisht for upgradation, has so far turned out 32 refurbished compartments.

Of these, 19 upgraded coaches were for the Thiruvananthapuram - Nizamuddin express and the remaining 13 for the Tiruchi - Howrah express.

The upgradation works of passenger coaches under Project Utkrisht were also being done at the Carriage Works and Loco Works both functioning at Perambur in Chennai.

A few days ago, the first rake of refurbished coaches rolled out under Project Utkrisht were deployed for the Tiruchi - Howrah express. While one set of coaches were upgraded at the Golden Rock Railway Workshop, the others were done at the Carriage Works and Loco Works at Perambur at a total cost of Rs. 60 lakh.

The Ministry of Railways has decided to upgrade 66 pairs of trains comprising of 140 rakes under Project Utkrisht and allocated funds for the same.

A senior workshop official said the plan was to turn out 18 passenger coaches before this month-end, of which nine refurbished coaches would be deployed for the Chennai - Kanyakumari express and the remaining for the Rameswaram - Okha express.

The workshop has targetted to refurbish 55 more coaches before the end of the current financial year, the official said.

The interiors and exteriors of the coaches chosen for upgradation would be refurbished under this project aimed at enhancing comfort for the passengers. The coaches taken up for upgradation were designed by the Integral Coach Factory at Perambur in Chennai.

The official further said as part of upgradation works the interiors of the coaches would be provided with PVC (Poly Vynile Chloride) flooring besides provision of high quality vinyl wrapping in the doorway and gangway areas. In addition to these, hydrophobic coating would be done on all stainless steel items.

The toilets would be provided with Epoxy flooring and Venturi type ventilation system for better ventilation in toilets. The exteriors of the coaches would be given a fresh coat of Polyurethane painting to sport a bright look, the official added.

The workshop which also regularly carries out periodic overhaul of broad gauge coaches was chosen under Project Utkrisht by the Railway Board and allocated substantial number of coaches for upgradation among other workshops in the Southern Railway zone, the official added.

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