Indian Railways has revised freight charging on a gross tonne kilometre (GTKM) basis and introduced incentives that are encouraging cement companies to shift bulk cement movement to rail. The Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) is facilitating silo infrastructure at its terminals and promoting tank container operations to lower logistics costs and emissions. The Railways reduced charges on a GTKM basis from Rs zero point nine zero to Rs zero point eight five per tonne per kilometre, which has made rail movement more competitive against road transport.

Discounts for empty return movement on a GTKM basis have also been offered to improve economics for users. Trade response to the GTKM charging scheme has been described as encouraging by officials, and several cement producers have approached CONCOR to use tank containers. The reforms are projected to reduce overall freight costs for bulk cement movement, lower fuel consumption and reduce emissions by shifting tonnage from road to rail.

The earlier charging structure had applied haulage on a per TEU basis with distance slabs and offered graded discounts for empty return movement of 50 per cent in the first year, 40 per cent in the second year, 30 per cent in the third year, 20 per cent in the fourth year and 10 per cent in the fifth year, with no discount from the sixth year onwards. That mechanism had been found unattractive by cement producers and had deterred modal shift from road to rail. The new GTKM approach is intended to create a win?win situation for the Railways and its customers.

CONCOR is also supporting terminal investments to enable faster turnaround and reduced handling losses compared with bagged consignments, which should improve plant to market efficiency. The adoption of tank containers and silo handling is expected to shorten transit cycles and lower handling costs while contributing to sustainability goals. Officials indicated that deepening these reforms and marketing the schemes will be central to attracting additional loading onto the rail network.