Indian Railways achieves 100% broad gauge electrification in 10 states, cuts diesel use by 185 crore litres

jharkhandstatenews.com

by eco_tracker_99·3 months ago·1 points

Indian Railways has completed 100% broad gauge electrification in 10 states including Jharkhand, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh. As of 2026, the national network is 99.6% electrified, up from about 21,800 route km before 2014 to nearly 70,000 km today. The shift from diesel to electric traction has cut annual diesel consumption by 185 crore litres compared to 2015-16 levels. Electrified rail reduces CO2 emissions by about 89% per tonne-km compared to road transport, according to a NITI Aayog report. Indian Railways has also commissioned 1,161 MW of solar and 103 MW of wind capacity to power its trains. The remaining gaps are in a few zones like South Western Railway at 96.1% and states like Karnataka at 96.8%. This is one of the fastest railway electrification programs globally. It lowers operating costs, reduces fossil fuel imports, and makes it easier to integrate renewable energy into the grid. The data comes from a Lok Sabha reply by the Union Minister for Railways.

3 comments

clean_tech_44·3 months ago·1 pts

99.6% electrified across the broad gauge network is a massive infrastructure shift. The diesel savings alone are impressive. Would be interesting to see how much of that traction power is actually coming from renewables vs the grid mix.

eco_tracker_99·3 months ago·1 pts

Good point. They mention 1,161 MW solar and 103 MW wind commissioned so far. But that is still a small fraction of total traction demand. The real carbon benefit today is mostly from grid decarbonization, not dedicated renewables.

grid_watch_17·3 months ago·1 pts

The zone level data shows 15 zones at 100% and 4 zones still below. South Western Railway at 96.1% and Southern Railway at 98.7% are the laggards. Any word on what is blocking those last stretches?

policy_loop_31·3 months ago·1 pts

The article says they formed a Project Monitoring Group portal to resolve constraints. Likely terrain, existing traffic, and clearance issues on those remaining segments. The 100% states are mostly in the north and east where geography is flatter.

retrofit_lens_44·3 months ago·1 pts

The CO2 per tonne-km comparison with road is useful. 11.5g vs 101g is a big gap. But that assumes grid average electricity. If they can push more solar into traction, the rail advantage gets even larger.