Dedicated freight corridor a game changer

24 November 2013, New Delhi, Puja Bhattacharjee

Anil Gupta, CMD, Concor spoke about the performance of the company and the container
market in India.
Set up in 1988, Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) is a miniratna public sector
enterprise under the ministry of railways. It provides multi-modal logistics support for
domestic and external trade. Its core businesses are cargo carriers, terminal operations and
warehouse operations. In this interview, Anil Gupta talks about the challenges faced by the
PSU and its
expansion plans. Edited excerpts:
How fast is CONCOR growing?
We were growing at a rate of 13-per cent+ CAGR (compound annual growth rate) till 2008.
Since October 2008 we have been affected by the global recession. In the last five years
CAGR has gone down to around 3.5 per cent. But this year we are expecting to grow at
around 10 per cent.
Is the container market in India very competitive?
There are 17 licenced container train operators in India and we are one of them. All the
players are fighting for the limited volume because of the global recession. Once that ends
there will be enough share for everyone. However, CONCOR has been able to retain the
major market share which is around 75 per cent.
Is the growth of CONCOR proportional to the growth of the market?
In the last three years, CONCOR is growing at a relatively higher rate than the growth of the
all the players put together. Our market share, which had declined to 72 per cent, is 76 per
cent now. The growth rate has been affected by the global recession and the present market
condition. Exports from India are not growing as compared to imports. As a result there is a
heavy import-export imbalance which is affecting all the players, including us.
How was CONCOR able to do so?
CONCOR has a very large customer base which has helped us even during adversity. We
have the largest terminal base with 63 terminals. We are covering each and every corner of
the country whereas our competitors are confining themselves to only some areas. We also
have the advantage of good frequency of trains. There is service of eight or nine trains at
Tughlakabad ICD (inland container depot) every day. So even if the container misses the first
train, it can go in the second or ninth train the same day. But a private operator may have a
train which runs once in four-five days. So customers are more comfortable with CONCOR.
Our quality of service is by far the best. We have a very efficient tracking system. Customers
can log into the website and track the containers. They can predict reasonably well when their
container is going to arrive. We do a customer satisfaction survey every year as a part of our
MoU with the government of India. It is an independent survey done by the professional
bodies. They have been giving us very good ratings. Last year the rating was above 89 per
cent.

Does CONCOR have any global ambitions?

We already have one terminal operating in Nepal. This is the only rail-linked ICD in Nepal,
where Raxaul is the Indian station and Birganj is the Nepalese station. This ICD has been
built by Nepal with the help of Asian Development Bank and we are managing it. We are
planning to extend our services to other neighbouring countries as well. We have been
exploring Bangladesh and are trying to link our ICDs in Dhaka. There has been no proper
response from the Bangladesh authorities yet. Similarly, we have made proposals to the Sri
Lankan government and it port authorities for starting multi-modal (services) there. We have
the ambition to associate ourselves in building up the infrastructure of multi-modal in African
and Latin American countries if the opportunity arises. We are in contact with different
people; we are looking at tenders being floated there and the local requirements. But nothing
concrete has emerged so far.
Is CONCOR awaiting Navratna status?
Our company was cleared for the grant of Navratna status by a committee of secretaries
almost five years ago. But they made a condition that this would be implemented once the
post of managing director is converted to that of chairman and managing director. Initially the
railway ministry was hesitant. Railways have around 12 enterprises and they have to
implement the rule uniformly. This year railways have reviewed the entire situation and has
agreed to have the post of chairman cum managing director at all its PSUs except two IRFC
and DFCCIL (Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India). Our proposal was again sent
to the department of public enterprises (DPE) to activate the old sanction. But we were asked
to submit a fresh proposal which we did. The government will take action after the railway
board submits the proposal to DPE.
What motivated CONCOR to develop an integrated logistics park in Visakhapatnam?
During 12th five-year plan we have ambitions to develop almost 15 new facilities, all of
which will be integrated logistics park. Visakhapatnam is one such facility. Till now
CONCOR has only been running and developing container terminals for handling two kinds
of containers one for international export and import and the other for domestic cargo
movement business. But all our new facilities will be logistics parks which will have a bulk
handling area in addition to an export-import terminal and a domestic terminal.
Railways have permitted us to handle railway wagons in the private freight terminals. Our
new terminals will be private freight terminals, where we would handle containers as well as
non-containers.
There is a lot of demand for warehousing which will be generated by GSP and retail. At the
same place we will have warehouses for catering to the requirement along with road transport
and trans-shipment facilities. It will be one composite place where you could handle
everything. Today if a wagon comes to a railway station it has to be unloaded within a
specified time frame. If 3,000 tonnes are coming in for the customer, he has to make
arrangements for unloading this at the railway goods shed and then take it further. The
customer does not have the space to keep such large containers. They want only 300-500
tonnes in a day. But once our logistic parks are developed, goods can be kept there and could
be delivered as and when the customer wants. This would stop all the interim costs being
incurred currently would stop. We are also planning to implement scientific handling of some
cargo like cement. Visakhapatnam is one of these facilities which we are developing on
around 100 acres of land. We already have a container freight station (CFS) in
Visakhapatnam which is chock-a-block full. This would be developed in two phases. The first

10 acres we are developing to build another CFS which will be rail linked. The remaining 90
acres will be used for developing rail sightings, bulk handling, having a proper export-import
and domestic
terminal, warehousing etc.
How will CONCOR benefit from the upcoming dedicated freight corridor (DFC)?
Railways are doing a great thing by creating capacity ahead of demand. DFC will change the
entire freight scenario in the company. It will be a game changer. Today we run a train of 90
TEUs. In DFC we will run a train of 400 TEUs. Today one train takes around 40 hours from
here to Jawaharlal Nehru port (Mumbai). From Mundra and Pipavav it takes about 60-70
hours (to reach here). Once DFC comes up the trains from Mundra, Pipavav and JN port
should be here within 24 hours. Many of the proposed 15 facilities will be on the DFC. Four
of them are confirmed, others we are trying. We are looking for land; we are talking to state
governments and different bodies. One facility has already come on a place called Kathuwas
which is around 35 km short of Rewari (near Delhi). We are already operating the facility.
Today it is into the current existing rail corridor. Once the DFC comes up it will not take us
more than a week to link ourselves to DFC. This facility is already being planned with all the
dimensions of DFC. Once the DFC connection comes, once the rail route is laid by
companies given the contract by DFCCIL we will be able to link to it and add more
connectivity. DFC might fully come by March 2017 but some patches of DFC will be
available for increasing the existing line capacity and we will make use of that. Double stack
trains are already running between Mundra, Pipavav and Ghatua terminal in a regular
manner.
What kind of challenges the company has faced in the last few years?
One of the challenges we have faced is slow growth. The second big challenge is the exportimport imbalance, imports have been higher and exports have been lower. As a result, a lot of
times empty containers are required to be run which means logistics costs go up. Governance
Now

Frame fair rules

for logistic
development; end
oligopolistic
business of PSUs:
ASSOCHAM
study
India Infoline News Service | Mumbai
| September 08, 2015 12:08 IST

Currently organized logistics

facilities are developing
primarily in the form of
container freight
stations/container depots, mega-food processing parks and free trade
warehousing zones (FTWZ), apart from the individual development of these
premises.
In order to improve operatioanal efficiency and move up on the Ease of Doing Business
Index, India needs to develop its logistics services in the organised sector, which in turn
would require PPP models based on pricing policies good enough to attract the private sector,
ASSOCHAM has said.
Besides, the oligopolistic behaviour of state-owned agencies like CONCOR must end. "A
successful PPPs (Public - Private-Partnership) model in dry port operations would require
pricing policies based on long - run average cost pricing aimed at full cost recovery by public
and private dry port operators alike. This would eventually help establish a level playing field
for all the players, irrespective of the nature of ownership," the chamber said.
In order to compete with the global market and arrest the downswing in the exports, the
country requires integrated multi-modal logistics parks to efficiently store, retrieve, pack and
ship products across the countrys manufacturing and distribution locations in the most costeffective way.
Currently organized logistics facilities are developing primarily in the form of container
freight stations/container depots, mega-food processing parks and free trade warehousing
zones (FTWZ), apart from the individual development of these premises.
To recover initial capital costs such as land acquisition, leveling, paving, access roads etc., a
private dry port operator needs to charge a price equal to his long-run average cost. This

places new entrant at a competitive disadvantage vis visa public operator whose investment
costs need not be recovered.
Container train operations are dominated by a few operators with state owned CONCOR
accounting for a dominant market share. Given the significant entry barriers in terms of
regulatory barriers and large upfront costs makes container train operations inherently
oligopolistic.
Given homogenous service offerings and exogenous demand, oligopolistic market bestows a
leadership or price setting role on the dominant player. Dominant player can reap
supernormal profits in a situation of strong demand and can even indulge in predatory pricing
to protect its market share.
CONCOR' s pricing strategy to some extent reflects traits of oligopolistic behavior. Indian
ICDs/CFs segment in the logistics chain in particular is marked by a strong public sector
presence substantial excess capacity, skewed spatial distribution of ICDs/CFs, smaller size in
terms of handling capacity vis--vis operators abroad which handle million plus TEUs
annually.
In India the Government (its agencies and departments) are also the owners of huge tracts of
land which has a bearing on land prices. In addition to this, the government, through its
corporate entities, is also the leading dry port service provider (CONCOR) and warehouse
owner (Central Warehousing Corporation).
Public sector dry port owners enjoy a huge advantage of having land available for use at
token cost or leased out to for long periods at very low, subsidized rates. The government
thus becomes a price setter for dry port services. In contrast, the private sector does not get
similar preferential treatment and has to acquire land at market values. A dry port is
essentially a land-intensive venture but its related infrastructure is in the nature of public
utility. Competition between the public and the private sector has not been taking place on a
level playing field.
The size of dry ports varies according to the industrial production and commercial
transactions in the area served by the facility. In the European Union, there is considerable
variation in the average size of dry ports (typically 40,000 to 1.9 million TEU throughputs
per year), land area (typically 30-200 hectares), number of firms (typically 25-100) and
overall employment (approximately 7,000 to around 37,000 people). Highly urbanized
countries tend to have more dry ports, but of smaller size for example Spain (23 dry ports),
Belgium (9), Switzerland (4), and Slovenia (3) [UNESCAP (August 2006, p8]. In the
Republic of Korea, four dry ports have been built. Yangsan ICD was built in 2000 close to
Busan Port and is running around 66 % of its capacity. Uiwang inland container depot near
Seoul was developed in 1992 under a Build-Operate- Transfer contract with a private
concessionaire. It currently handles close to 1 million TEU per year.

Take the ride

7 June 2015, New Delhi, Dominick Rodrigues
The Millenium Post
Freight transport rates from India to Russia
and other CIS countries are expected to drop
considerably, writes Dominick Rodrigues.
A recent government study has shown that
freight transport time and rates from India to
Russia and other CIS countries are expected to
drop considerably alongside leading to
development of trade in the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) due to a
new route. The Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations in India (FFFAI), on behalf of
the Ministry of Commerce, had conducted a successful dry run study on the (INSTC) in
which they had dispatched a container on the NhavaSheva Bandar Abbas (Iran) Baku
(Azerbaijan) and NhavaSheva Bandar Abbas Amirabad (Iran) Astrakhan (Russia route
via the Caspian Sea in August 2014 and followed the shipments to identify the bottlenecks in
this corridor.
This is an alternative route to CIS countries than the
conventional route via European base port and St
Petersburg. The FFFAI discovered that the +INSTC
was 30 per cent cheaper and 40 per cent shorter than
the current conventional route and successful
activation of the corridor will help reduce dwell time
and transaction costs by connecting India to Russia
within 16-21 days at competitive freight rates leading
to development of trade in the INSTC. It is also
expected to eliminate usage of reefer containers for
agro commodities and support supplies to Russia. The
FFFAI, after successful completion of this study,
submitted a detailed report of the findings to the
Ministry of Commerce which has approved it.
Meanwhile, excited by this study report, logistics players at the recently-concluded FFFAI
Biennial Convention in Mumbai are riding a new business high alongside eagerly awaiting
the execution of goods and services tax (GST) at the earliest, though also being cautious
about some gaps needed to be filled before it is rolled in. The Convention, which drew wide
participation from stakeholders in the EXIM Trade, Chambers of Commerce, Forwarders,
Shipping Lines, Ports and Government officials from 13 member countries of INSTC, Turkey
and Oman focused on the huge potential and opportunities in trade between members of
INSTC countries, and awareness of Industry Dynamics while providing a platform for
sharing best practices and standards alongside discussing and resolving industry issues.
The Convention looked forward to notable announcements on GST Implementation and
changes, Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor, Make in India, Ease of doing Business,
inland waterways and coastal shipping, besides other topics with the emphasis on developing
dedicated freight corridors and expansion of rail network to improve velocity of domestic
trade, which in turn would reduce the uncertainty of international trade also. There is a plan
to develop 24 cities in this corridor alongside the call for Make in India Ease of doing
Business by the Government of India being pursued at all levels with the government setup

and other stakeholders. This will intensify Indias engagement in the Global Value Chain and
global trade through increased focus on manufacturing especially in the defence sector that
is envisaged to boost the logistics sector. Nuclear Power Plants, thrust by government in
energy self-reliance, are expected to trigger import of power plants and ancillary equipment
like never before. Inland Waterways and Coastal Shipping are expected to witness
tremendous increase in movement of goods through inland waterways and coastal shipping to
reduce dependence on overburdened road infrastructure, according to Convention officials.
Highlighting the need for exploring new routes while speaking at the Convention,
Guruprasad Mohapatra, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, said, CIS countries are
important trade partners of India. The bilateral trade between India and CIS region has
increased from $8,346.15 million in 2010-2011 to $11,054.02 million in 2014-2015.
With the Convention being themed Inspired India Surging Ahead On Agile, Adept,
Accelerated Logistics, the FFFAI which is the oldest and the Apex Body of Custom
Brokers and Freight Forwarders controlling ninety per cent of Indias international logistics
trade focused on various other issues that witnessed decisions on: Opening of a Call Centre;
Technology for Seamless Credit Flow; and Rate of GST & Place of Supply.
Kickstarting the Convention, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis described it as a
privilege for the convention being organised in Mumbai and felt this was the right time with
inspiration being the beginning of Indias growth story. We have an opportunity to be a
manufacturing hub through Make in India and you can become leaders of the growth story as
it is dependent on a few pillars of industry of which Logistics is one. With the GST being
passed, we have a lot of hopes. Countries around the world want to invest in India and the
government is providing measures for doing seamless business, he said
Fadnavis said, The Maharashtra government is coming up with an integrated logistic park at
Bhiwandi in Mumbai. The development is ready and soon a state-of-the-art facility will be
developed to boost your industry. GST will also open doors for industry. We are focusing in
Maharashtra at Aurangabad and Nagpur, besides the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor
providing lots of opportunities in the pipeline. Developing major big ports is also a focus and
we will look into cargo handling so as to increase it multifold. Special Purpose Vehicles
(SPVs) are involved in trying to develop railway connectivity to ports. I am keen to know
about FFFAIs aspirations as we all want Maharashtra to grow and will proactively take
measures to deliver your industry roadmap. Rajiv Kapoor, Commissioner, Service Tax, said,
Seamless flow of credit is the biggest factor. Once GST is implemented, credit flow will be
benefitted. The players will also have to build more and larger warehouses which will add to
the capacity and create more businesses. With this, it will also add to ease of movement of
inter-state goods. Malini Arjun, Partner, BMR Advisors, said, GST will bring a
transformation of practices for all stakeholders and GST rates will differ in different states.
Reviewing prices of Goods will be also on the agenda. GST will help in providing a
transparent system of pricing.
A panel discussion on Adapting to Make In India saw Shantanu Bhadkamkar, Chairman of
International Federation of Customs Brokers Association (IFCBA), and MD of ATC Clearing
& Shipping, stating, Make in India is at centre-stage amongst all policies defined by the
Government of India. All stakeholders should come together on one platform to make the
initiative a fool-proof one.

However, structuring the data and analysing the data is the need of the hour, D K Singh,
Additional Director General Foreign Trade, said while pointing out that opening of a call
centre to address all issues of the stakeholders would be a wise move.
Debashish Dutta, President, FFFAI, had said, The convention theme is based on Make in
India programme driven by our government. Logistics is the pre-requisite for Make in India
to succeed and this convention will provide food for thought for policy makers.
Noting that this convention was held in Mumbai after 14 years, Ashish Pednekar, Convenor,
urged the government to fast-track infrastructure projects and create logistic hubs in major
cities. Subhash Desai, Maharashtra Minister for Industries, said, We are keen to create an
ecosystem for industrial development and customs brokers have a greater role in taking the
cause ahead for growth of the industry. Mumbai is the maritime capital and the convention
will come up with innovative ideas to grow the trade.
Describing as a Lions Step Prime Minister Narendra Modis Make in India national
programme designed to facilitate investment, foster innovation and build best-in-class
manufacturing infrastructure, Amit Kamat, Secretary, FFFAI Convention 2015, queried, Can
Indias logistics industry strive for a lions share of this lions step? The FFFAI anticipates
that with focus being placed from top most level on reviving the manufacturing sector in the
country, it will take couple of years for the results to yield for this effort. Logistics is the
fulcrum of global trade. The FFFAI is working actively to provide the requisite mind-set,
skill, technological roadmap and develop execution ability to handle the next growth curve in
economy. This will help in reduction of transaction cost and provide efficient movement for
manufactured products within and outside the country.
Rajesh Alreja, Vice-President, Godrej and Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd, observed that lack of
shipping facilities on Indian coast and no Barge movement for lifting Heavy lift Projects
Cargo on Inland Waterways of India was leading to exorbitant costs and making India
globally uncompetitive.
Poor infrastructure was noticed at the small ports, which are under the control of the state
governments and are lacking road and rail connectivity, he said while urging for a Berth
reserved solely for movement of Coastal Cargo without any hindrances being faced, either
from the Custom Authorities or their Regulators.
Indias coastlines
India has one of the most beautiful coastlines about 7,500 kms including some virgin
territory in the world and we should be able to allow movement of passengers to travel
within states by the sea route, and hence promote RORO services wherein trucks,
containers and passengers could be accommodated, said Mark Fernandes, Director, Sylvester
& Co, and FFFAI 2015 Session Chairman, for Inland Waterways and Coastal Shipping.
Coastal and inland waterways in India are greatly under-utilised and the Government needs
to wake up to the massive loss to it and the travelling public in the benefits that could be
obtained from it. For example, in the countrys economic hub of Mumbai itself, it takes four
hours by road to travel from Mumbai to Alibag a hugely popular seaside resort town
whereas it takes barely 20 minutes for the same distance by sea-route.
Unfortunately, till date, vessels used for transporting passengers belong to the 1930s-1940s
era and not to the 21st century where hi-speed crafts and catamarans are deployed globally.

So the Indian government needs to subsidise and extend all facilities like: 1) capital goods
like sea crafts, inland waterways crafts etc where imported to be free from red tape, huge
duty structures and restrictions and manning restrictions. 2) Bunkerage for these vessels
should be supplied at international rates, and not at domestic rates which are 300 per cent
marked up with taxes etc. 3) All ports whether major or state-owned must have one berth
reserved solely for coastal crafts and the tariff should be the same 25 per cent charged for
international shipping vessels. If all of this is done, the mode of transport from road and rail
to coastal and inland waterways will witness a sea change.
Sadly, the neighbouring erstwhile Portuguese and now Indian territory of Goa does not
possess even a single Marina to house the thousands of yachts sailing their course across the
world on their sea-going voyages. A Marina comprises area where 300 to 500 boats and
yachts can be parked safely and has common facilities restaurants, which generate foreign
exchange as well create jobs.
Goa and its steamers
Goa was famous for its Steamer service that plied between Mumbai and Goa and took nearly
a whole day of travel following pit stops at ports along the Maharashtra coast before finally
docking the Panjim the capital of Goa. The service was totally stopped when the Steamers
were taken off to ferry the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to Sri Lanka in the 1990s.
Catamarans tried to do the job but failed miserably with passengers heaving their insides in
rhythm with the waves outside on the eight-hour route. Now comes the good news that a
ferry service between Mumbai and Goa is to begin shortly.
The chairman of Murmugao Port Trust, Cyril C George told the media in Mumbai on April 7,
2015 that the ferry service will cater to the tourists commuting between Mumbai and Goa. He
also said that Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) has registered a sterling performance clocking a
remarkable 25 per cent growth during the just concluded financial year. In the process, MPT
has also recorded the highest growth rate on a year on year basis, among all the 12 major
ports in India. This is a commendable achievement, considering that the Port suffered
massive downturn in the throughput following the ban on exports of iron ore from Goa. From
a peak of 50.02 MMT handled during 2010-2011, the Port faced fall of fortunes in 20132014, when the total cargo throughput was reduced to 11.74 MMT.
Showing a great degree of resilience, the port has shown a resurgent growth by handling
14.71 million metric tons (MMT) cargo between April 2014 and March 2015, as against
11.74 MMT during the corresponding period in 2013-2014. Out of the total throughput of
14.71 MMT, exports accounted for 3.33 MMT (23 per cent) and Imports accounted for 11.38
MMT (77 per cent). Prior to the ban on iron ore mining, iron ore exports constituted a lions
share (80 per cent) in the ports cargo profile. MPT has since staged a remarkable turnaround
from being a mono-commodity port to being a multi-commodity port by adding a wide range
of cargo to its kitty. Today, coal, coke, fertilisers, wood chips, petroleum and other chemicals
figure prominently in its cargo profile and constitute 90 per cent of total tonnage handled at
the Port.

Container Corporation of India: On the fast track

Meera Siva

THEHINDU

Implementation of GST and dedicated freight corridors should accelerate

volume growth
Transporting bulk cargo by rail is cheaper and nearly twice as energy efficient than by road.
Yet, the share of load moved in India by rail has been dropping over the years from nearly 90
per cent in 1950s to under 36 per cent currently. This is much lower than the nearly 50 per
cent share that rail transport has in the US and China. One reason for the higher popularity of
roadways in India is the existence of smaller distributed warehouses. The other is the capacity
and speed limitation issues in the railways at present.
But these could change in the next few years with a likely structural shift in favour of rail
transport. One, the implementation of GST could make it more efficient to operate large
centralised warehouses. Two, the dedicated freight corridor (DFC) projects will increase the
capacity and transport speed of cargo by rail. Three, freight volumes for core commodities
such as coal could pick up as the economy gathers steam.
These factors bode well for Container Corporation of India (Concor), a State- owned rail
transport service provider. The company is the leader in the segment, with a market share of
75 per cent. Concor has a vast network of 63 container depots (of the nearly 70 total depots)
to handle domestic and export-import cargo and a fleet of over 11,000 wagons.
Investors seem to have taken note of the companys potential. Concors stock is up 30 per
cent in the last six months. After the run-up, it currently trades at 32 times its 2014-15
earnings per share. This is at a premium to the average multiple of less than 20 times in the
past three years.

But the valuation re-rating seems justified given that the company is an undisputed leader in
the growing rail logistics segment. Being State owned, it also has an enviable advantage of
having access to strategic land at low cost.
Expansion drive
The company is on an expansion path and hopes to increase its cargo capacity from three
million TEU (twenty-feet equivalent units) to over five million TEU by 2017. It is also
diversifying its operations and growing its cold-storage, air cargo and port operations. Also in
the works are investments to grow its non-containerised cargo segment business by
developing six-eight terminals along rail tracks over two-three years. The company is also
setting up five logistics parks in Andhra Pradesh and Telengana.
Concor has a strong balance sheet with no debt and sufficient cash balance to fund these
expansion plans. It also has strategic partnerships with a dozen logistics service providers
including Allcargo and APM Terminals to offer single window multimodal logistics services.
Investors with a three year view can buy the stock, given the companys strong long-term
growth prospects. That said, the Government is planning to reduce its stake from 61.8 per
cent stake to up to 51.8 per cent and this may cause short-term price volatility - offering good
buying opportunities.
Boost to revenue
In 2014-15, Concors revenue and profit grew 15 per cent 11 per cent respectively to Rs.
6,150 crore and Rs. 1,050 crore. Volumes in its export-import segment (accounting for threefourth of the revenue) increased 11 per cent in a difficult year when the countrys exports
dipped. Domestic volume dropped nearly 4 per cent, but higher freight rates helped revenue
growth. The companys near-term revenue should be aided by volume up-tick while its longterm growth could get a leg-up from significant expansion plans.
Concor will be a key beneficiary of the DFC projects which will enable speedy delivery,
higher efficiency and more cargo carrying capacity. Over 3,300 km of new lines will be
added by December 2019 in the eastern and western DFCs, boosting freight volumes in at
least three ways. One, the load limit that can be carried will be higher. Two, delays will be
reduced due to not sharing the line and achieving higher speeds - up to 100 km/hr, from the
current average speed of 25 km/hr. Three, cost is expected to be lower by 40 per cent, making
rail transport more economical. About 84 per cent of the land for the has been acquired.
Also, coal transport, which accounts for nearly half the freight traffic for Concor, should
revive as coal output is expected to double in the next four years. Volumes in other
commodities such as iron ore and cement could also pick up as the economy revives.
Concor is also diversifying its revenue by expanding in other segments such as cold chain. It
is also planning to grow its air cargo handling business beyond Mumbai airport. Also, setting
up freight terminals to handle non-containerized cargo will add to revenue in two to three
years.

(This article was published on July 4, 2015)