New Delhi: Indian Railway is taking steps to increase renewable energy production capacity including solar and wind energy across the rail network following that various stations, buildings, and rail complexes have been operated using only renewable energy, a senior Railway ministry official said.
According to the senior official, as of June 30 this year, Indian Railways’ solar energy production capacity has exceeded 238 MW, and wind energy production capacity has surpassed 103 MW. In comparison, before the year 2014, solar energy production was only 3.68 MW, and wind energy production was just 10.5 MW.
The railway is committed to achieve Net Zero Carbon emissions by 2030. To achieve this aim, over the past decade, from 2014 to 2024, there has been a significant increase in renewable energy production capacity.
Moreover, the railway is not only using renewable energy to operate trains but also powering railway stations and buildings with solar energy. Currently, over 1,950 railway stations across the country are powered by solar energy, the railway officer informed.
Moving ahead, the railway is planning to operate trains with green energy. With the continuous increase in the budget allocated to Railways by the Centre, it is clear that the production of renewable energy by Indian Railways will continue to grow rapidly. Increasing solar and wind energy production will not only help the railway achieve its Net Zero Carbon emissions goal but also enable it to make a notable contribution to environmental conservation, the official pointed out, the official said.
In this step to achieve Net Zero Carbon emission structures, the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) zone has achieved a significant milestone by converting its six buildings to Net Zero Carbon emission structures. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), under the Ministry of Power, has honoured six different buildings of the zone with the 'Shunya Label' recognition as Net Zero Energy Buildings, the railway officials said.
The Central Railways recently took initiative under the mission net zero and installed a 647 KWp Roof Top Solar System which will likely mitigate 18,122 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
