In a historical accomplishment, CRS authorisation has been obtained for the opening of AC electric traction to & from Guwahati railway station. Guwahati is the largest and busiest railway station of Northeast being situated in the capital of Assam. So the largest city of Northeast is now literally linked with all metros and other big cities via 25KV AC traction. Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has achieved Electrification work of 649 RKM or 1294 TKM from Katihar to Guwahati. This way, the Total HDN (High-Density Network) routes (649 RKM) coming in NFR have been launched with Electric Traction. This achievement will now link New Delhi to Guwahati on seamless Electric Traction. It is yet another attempt by NFR for capital connectivity by Green Transportation. It may be stated that Northeast Frontier Railway has already begun running trains with electric traction from the Kamakhya station with the arrival and departure of the Brahmaputra Mail with AC traction since 22nd October last. With the achievement of the electrification of the Guwahati station, other prestigious trains like Rajdhani Express, Tejas Rajdhani Express etc from the Northeast can now be shifted over to operate on electric traction from Guwahati to the National capital and other cities such as Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, etc directly without change of traction enroute. This Electrification work will save foreign exchange reserves used on HSD Oil and would render greener transportation and reduce carbon footprints. Additionally, passenger trains with higher speed and heavier goods trains can be operated. Some of the advantages that will be obtained due to the electrification of the sections are that there would be net saving on foreign exchange spent on HSD Oil of Rs 300 Cr per annum. The consumption of HSD Oil will additionally be decreased by 3400 KL per month which will decrease dependence on imported petroleum. Due to seamless train operation, traction change, which is necessary at New Jalpaiguri and New Coochbehar will be done away with. It will improve the mobility of the trains. Due to improved mobility, the total running time between Katihar to Guwahati will be decreased by 2 hours due to the higher speed of the trains. Approximately 10% more no. of trains can be operated in the section. Due to electrification, heavier goods trains can be moved at higher speeds. With the improved line capacity, 10% new passenger trains can be launched, and this will help in the launch of more Rajdhani exp for capital connectivity projects. Electrification will decrease the dependence on imported petroleum. Due to electrification, Head on Generation (HOG) technology can be utilised instead of End on Generation (EOG) system with two power cars using two DG sets on either end on all Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coach fitted trains. The power generator cars which use approximately 100-litre diesel per hour can be preserved apart from the noise, fume emission during the run. Greenhouse gas emissions for electric traction will come which will result in a reduced carbon footprint. Image Source