India has come a long way from the British system of public transport to initiating the first Hyperloop project. Country’s public transport system is going through a revolutionary change and will soon transform into a cutting-edge technology.
The railway and coal minister, Piyush Goyal said that the cutting-edge and futuristic transportation system will soon be launched in India. Goyal was addressing the key issues in the transportation system the Global Business Summit in New Delhi. The current market scenario gives India a unique opportunity to lead the world in terms of tech intervention.
Railway transport in India still follows the British system. Whatever technological additions that were made post independence are limited in nature. He said, “We have a British system. The postindependence additions were limited and then a certain technological intervention was the Rajdhani express introduced in 1969. The second level of technology is 40 years old – we have to continue with that. Then we have the bullet train project – one intervention that’s third-level technology, though it is old but efficient.”
The railway minister also emphasized on Hyperloop’s initiative in India. We are going to be among first countries to implement Hyperloop. If the Indian railway can connect with the most modern technology, India can be the leader in coming few years. Minister also emphasized on the plan to completely overhaul the signaling system.
He said, “We've decided to go for the best in the world – ETCS2 signaling – which is (currently) just 25,000 km across the world. We'll have it across 120,000 km of rail lines,” he said. “When I give this contract out for six years, it will help companies manufacture in India and offer the lowest prices. We'll reduce costs by at least 20%.”
The transformation of the existing infrastructure will add a great value to the Indian economy. With the government’s efforts, a new growth model can be implemented. The transformation in the technology will create an opportunity to leapfrog and help India become a manufacturing hub for the world.
Government is working with manufacturing partners to rebuild the railway infrastructure in the country. Earlier Indian Railway used to divide 120,000 km project with six different partners. Going forward, the government wants manufacturers to compete to get all the business. The manufacturers will have to prove the quality of their work to get the whole contract.