The hidden cost of greenwashing the Indian Railways

The ‘mission 100% electrification’ project is about chasing a mirage of turning into a green railway; a large number of serviceable diesel locomotives will also become redundant

According to a recent report published in this daily, RITES Ltd., the consultancy arm of the Indian Railways, has won two contracts for the repurposing of six broad gauge diesel electric locomotives for export to some African railways. These locomotives will be converted for use on railways that use the Cape Gauge of 1,067 mm as against the 1,676 mm used on the broad gauge of the Indian Railways. While the Indian Railways, in collaboration with its consultancy public sector undertakings such as RITES and IRCON, has exported locomotives to countries in Asia and Africa in the past, this is probably for the first time that second-hand (used) locomotives are proposed to be exported after “gauge conversion’’. While there is no doubt that this is a commendable effort in re-engineering that involves virtually rebuilding the locomotives on a narrower platform, the story that lies hidden is a sordid saga of the humongous wasting of costly assets and profligacy unmatched in the annals of railways anywhere in the world, in pursuit of a wholly fictitious goal.

RTI data and policy justification

The report mentions “soon to be redundant diesel locomotives’. The fact is that even as far back as March 31, 2023, according to information obtained by this writer under the Right to Information Act (RTI) more than a year ago, there were 585 diesel locomotives stabled (kept idling/stored) in various locations across the Indian Railways’ network due to electrification. Further over 60% of those locomotives had a residual life of more than 15 years. Today, the figure is reported to be about 760 locomotives. How and why did the Indian Railways end up in a situation where hundreds of diesel electric locomotives in good working order with years of service still left in them became redundant? The answer lies with the policy of the government to electrify the entire broad gauge network of Indian Railways in mission mode, at a frenetic pace.

Railway electrification in India has long ago transcended mundane considerations such as economic and financial viability and joined the pantheon of universal desiderata such as world peace and universal brotherhood (Vasudeiva Kutumbakam). Today, railway electrification is generally justified broadly on two grounds: a saving of foreign exchange by reducing the import of crude oil and reducing environmental pollution, and, as a corollary of the second point, the adaptability to switch over to renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind. In fact in an official pamphlet issued by the Ministry of Railways in February 2021, entitled ‘Mission 100% Electrification – Moving Towards net zero carbon emission’, the objectives of the mission have been spelt out thus: to provide environment friendly, green and clean mode of transport to the people; and to unleash its potential to use of renewable energy, especially solar, by making use of the huge land parcel available along the railway tracks.

Let us examine these justifications in greater detail. The benefit of saving in foreign exchange is true in absolute terms. But viewed in the context of the total consumption of high speed diesel (HSD) oil in the country, the consumption for railway traction is minuscule. According to a study conducted by AC Nielsen and published by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (January 2014), when electrification of the Indian Railways was proceeding at a sedate “conventional” pace, 70% of of total diesel oil consumption in the country was by the transport sector. Out of this, the share of the Railways was just 3.24%. In comparison, trucks consumed 28% and agricultural sector consumed 13.2%. The share of the Railways reduced further to about 2% in 2021-22. So, 100% rail electrification will eliminate one of the smallest segments of diesel consumption, leaving the elephants in the room to roam free.

Truth about environmental considerations

The claim of environmental benefits is even more untenable in the Indian context. Consider the following facts. Electricity is a secondary source of energy, except when generated by lightning. It needs to be generated by expending a primary source of energy from fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas, nuclear energy or the kinetic energy of water stored at a height (as in hydroelectric projects), or through solar or wind power.

What is the situation in India? Nearly 50% of the electricity generated today in the country is through coal-fired thermal plants and the Indian Railways plays a crucial role in transporting the coal from the pit heads to the thermal power plants. In fact, nearly 50% of the Railways’ total freight earnings of about ₹1.7 lakh crore in 2023-24 (revised estimates) was generated by transporting coal for various purposes of which 80%, i.e., 40% of total freight earnings was generated only by transporting coal to thermal generating plants.

Replacing diesel locomotives with electric locomotives will only result in electric locomotives powered by electricity — about 50% of which is generated by burning coal — being used to move more coal to coal-fired thermal plants to generate more electricity, to transport more coal. Coal is considered the dirtiest fuel, environmentally, on the planet. A complete switchover by the Indian Railways to electric traction merely shifts the pollution caused by diesel locomotives near the railway tracks to the source of power generation in a more concentrated form, ultimately polluting the same atmosphere. Unless and until about 80% of the total electricity generated in the country comes from non-fossil fuels — and that day seems far off — any claim of 100% electrification of the Indian Railways, making it a “Green Railway’’, is in the realm of fantasy. Incidentally, before that situation becomes a reality, the Railways will have to find alternative commodities to coal — which, today, is the single highest freight earner — to avoid a financial meltdown.

This article is not intended to reopen the time-worn debate of electric traction versus diesel traction. The issue is about chasing a mirage of converting the Indian Railways into a “green railway’’, and, in the process, rendering a large number of serviceable diesel locomotives redundant. If all the locomotives already stabled are lined up today end to end, they will stretch for a length of almost 16 kilometres, a majority of them heading prematurely to the scrapyard.

‘Disaster management, strategic purposes’

Mission 100% electrification of the Railways will also result in a dichotomy in the near term. The Indian Railways today has more than 4,000 diesel locomotives. With the impending 100% electrification of the system, all of them will not become redundant overnight. According to a recent news report in a reputed financial daily, quoting a senior official, 2,500 diesel locomotives are proposed to be retained by the Railways for “disaster management and strategic purposes’’. It is beyond comprehension what disaster will require such a large number of diesel locomotives to be set aside, unless this is a ruse to avoid sending locomotives with considerable residual service life prematurely to the scrapyard. Further, it is reported that another nearly 1,000 locomotives will continue in service for the next few years to meet traffic commitments. In other words, a 100% electrified “green’’ railway will continue to use about 3,500 “dirty diesels” in the foreseeable future, financially sustained to a large extent by transporting a not-so-green commodity: King Coal. That raises the question: what was the ultimate purpose of the tearing hurry to electrify 100%?

The Indian Railways’ Mission 100% electrification is a sterling example of what happens when headline-grabbing slogans promoting vanity projects substitute for well-thought out policies, finally resulting in colossal wastage of tax-payers’ money.

But does anyone care?

K. Balakesari, formerly of the Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineers, was Member Staff, Railway Board

Published - December 17, 2024 12:16 am IST