Indian Railways to opt for BOT model for dedicated freight corridors

Indian Railways is contemplating to opt for the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model for the construction of dedicated freight corridors (DFCs) by taking private players on board. This will be a first for Indian Railways after the road construction sector went the BOT model way. Under the model, a private entity is responsible for designing, building, financing, maintaining, and transferring a project back to the government. The BOT model will be first implemented on a small stretch of Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (EDFC) between Sonnagar in Bihar and West Bengal's Dankuni. The under-construction EDFC will run between Ludhiana in Punjab and Dankuni in West Bengal. The 538-km stretch is expected to cost ₹15,000 crore. The current model has raised interest from major players, including L&T, GMR, Tata Projects, and foreign firms like DP World. The BOT model could be implemented in other DFCs announced in the Union Budget depending on the success of the Sonnagar-Dankuni dedicated freight corridor stretch.