Hydrogen Train: Indian Railways is preparing to run hydrogen fuel-based trains as soon as possible. As a pilot project, the train will be run on the Jind-Sonipat section. However, the cost of this is going to be high.
Hydrogen Train: Hydrogen-powered trains are going to run on the railway tracks in the country soon. However, experts say that it will not be so easy because the cost of this is high and it is also technically challenging.
The pilot project will start soon in this section
There are preparations to run the hydrogen train on the Jind-Sonipat section as a pilot project. For this, the hydrogen fuel cell will be installed on the existing Diesel Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU). The cost of the train and the cost of ground infrastructure is Rs 111 crore. It is to be launched by May this year. Its cost is equal to the 16 coach Vande Bharat train.
2800 crores spent on 35 hydrogen trains
The budget for the year 2023-24 included a cost of Rs 2800 crore for the construction of 35 hydrogen fuel cell based trains for various heritage/hill routes. Apart from this, a cost of Rs 600 crore was also included for hydrogen infrastructure for heritage lines. Experts believe that the expenditure on the hydrogen train project is very high. Railways has electrified all 70,000 route kilometers of the broad gauge network except trains built for tourism or heritage purposes.
High running cost of hydrogen trains
According to an estimate made by the Indian Railways, the running cost of trains running on hydrogen fuel will be high. Later if the number of trains increases, the cost will also be reduced. According to a report by Business Today, former General Manager of Indian Railways Lalit Chandra Trivedi says that green hydrogen is expensive and it is necessary to reduce the cost to bring it to par with diesel or electrification. In railways, after electrical power is generated from renewable energy, it is directly sent to the overhead electrical equipment through the grid, whereas there is no such option in the case of hydrogen.
