Railways launched massive infrastructure project to promote MSMEs

Indian Railways has undertaken a massive infrastructure project, Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC), with the goal of promoting MSME markets. The DFC project consists of two sections: the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC - from Dadri to Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust - 1506 km) and the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC - from Ludhiana to Sonnagar -1337 km). Almost 1,610 km (799 km EDFC and 811 km WDFC) of the total route were completed by October 2022. Similarly, on March 31, 2022, Indian Railways launched a pilot project for 'Joint Parcel Product' (JPP) in collaboration with India Post with the goal of targeting business-to-customer (B2C) and business-to-business (B2B) markets with a focus on e-Commerce and MSME markets. According to a statement released by the Ministry of Railways in April this year, the Department of Posts will provide first- and last-mile connectivity, while Railways will provide intermediate connectivity from station to station. A parcel van was attached to the Tapti Ganga Express (19045/46) between Surat and Varanasi for the pilot run of this project. Earlier this year, Indian Railways reduced the application fee for MSMEs seeking to become vendors with the Railways' Research Designs & Standards Organisation from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 10,000. (RDSO). Also read: Railways to upgrade 3 major stations in Chhattisgarh Railway to revamp 1,000 small stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme