New wagon shed at Hapa to boost repair capacity

Rajkot: Western Railway's Rajkot division commissioned a state-of-the-art combined wagon shed at its Hapa yard near Jamnagar, built at a cost of Rs 35.41 crore. Completed in a record 18 months by the Gati Shakti Unit, Rajkot, the facility is expected to enhance freight wagon maintenance.The shed is equipped with self-supported lightweight roofing, inspection gantries along two lines and hardonite flooring, which will enable faster and safer inspection, repair and maintenance of freight wagons.According to a statement from the Rajkot division, the facility will increase daily wagon repair capacity from 12 to 56. The routine overhauling (ROH) output is also expected to rise from around 70 wagons to more than 125 per month.Officials said the time required to repair sick wagons will also be reduced significantly. Wagons that earlier took around 10 days to be made operational can now be repaired in about three days.Rajkot divisional railway manager Giriraj Kumar Meena said the facility will improve the speed and efficiency of repairs, ensuring quicker availability of wagons for freight operations. This will help reduce yard congestion, improve train operations and increase the Railways' freight-carrying capacity, benefiting industries and traders, he said.