INDIAN Railways (IR) will shortly invite tenders to set up a rail coach factory at Pallakad in the southern Indian state of Kerala at an estimated cost of Rs 6bn ($US 101.7m.)

REPRESENTATIVES of the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL) have signed contracts worth a total of Rs 67bn ($US 1.15bn) with a consortium of Sojitz, Japan, and Larsen & Toubro, India, for Packages 1 and 2 of the Rewari – Iqbalgarh stretch of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC).

THE Indian government kicked off a programme of financial reforms for Indian Railways (IR) on August 1, when the cabinet approved proposals to establish an independent Rail Tariff Regulatory Authority (RTA).

INFRASTRUCTURE Leasing and Financial Services Rail (IF&LS), the Indian company which holds the PPP concession to build the metro in Gurgaon south of Delhi, has awarded Siemens a turnkey contract worth around Rs 5.65bn ($US 92m) to supply signalling, electrification, and rolling stock for the second phase of the network.

India's prime minister Mr Manmohan Singh was understandably upbeat in June when he inaugurated a critical component of a challenging project to build the first railway in the Kashmir valley. But, as Raghav Thakur reports, the new line is already five years late, and there are doubts whether it will be completed by the current December 2017 deadline.

DELHI Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has issued an international invitation to tender for a contract to supply 25 three-car metro trains for the first phase of the Kochi Metro.

FOLLOWING the retirement of Mr Vinay Mittal on July 1, current member, mechanical, Mr Arunendra Kumar (pictured right) has also temporarily assumed the position of chairman of Indian Railways' board.

India waved goodbye to its fifth railway minister in four years last month following allegations of corruption that shook the nation. Raghav Thakur considers the prospects for Indian Railway following the cash for jobs scandal.

FOLLOWING an international tender, the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL) has issued a provisional notification of contract award to a consortium of Sojitz, Japan, and Larsen & Toubro, India, for Packages 1 and 2 of the Rewari – Iqbalgarh section of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor.