The Union Minister for Railways & Coal, Shri Piyush Goyal today inaugurated the 5th PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, organized “Global Rail Convention 2018” with the theme “New Growth Eco-system from steam to bullet” - Innovation: Partnership and Challenges (Passenger and Freight).Speaking on the occasion, Shri Piyush Goyal said that he is aiming to make travel safe by according the highest priority to ensuring safety. Shri Goyal said “life of every passenger aboard Indian Railways is precious”. Since signals play a vital role in ensuring train movements, he has taken steps to ensure revamping of signaling system very soon. The Minister informed that the ETCS level 2/level 1 technology will be soon inducted in the Indian Railways. The Minister added that the benefits across economies of scale will help awarding larger bulk orders at cheaper cost. He said the Ministry of Railways’ motto is to provide modern, new and safe railways to all the citizens of India. Efficiency with competition is the guiding principle for the work culture in the Ministry, he added.As a corollary by providing ETCS signaling, the Railway Stations will also need to get the benefit of Wi-Fi connectivity.
Availability of Wi-Fi on Railway Stations will in turn benefit the citizens living nearby as they would be able to use the Station Wi-Fi kiosks to engage with other tasks, making the Railway Stations an attractive and useful feature in their lives.Talking about other initiatives undertaken under his leadership in the Ministry of Railways, Shri Piyush Goyal said that the decision has been taken only to make LHB Coaches, as LHB Coaches are most sturdy and withstand accidents better, minimizing fatalities. The Minister also said that efforts are being make to ensure that the Unmanned Level Crossings in the main routes will all be Manned henceforth.The Global Rail Convention 2018 also had a special Railway Board Session featuring the Initiatives and Opportunities in the Railway Sector. Panel discussion were also held on issues of Track, Signaling and Electrification and latest developments and best practices in Rolling-Stock and Freight, Seamless Multimodal Logistics. The Ambassador Czech Republic to India and Ambassador of Belgium to India were also present on the occasion.