Taking a step forward in the “Green Railways” initiative, Western Railway has added yet another feather to its hat. The Western Railway’s coaching depots at Dr. Ambedkar Nagar and Indore in Ratlam Division have been awarded a Silver Rating by CII GreenCo, Hyderabad. With this, these coaching depots have become the first depots on Indian Railways to be awarded a Silver Rating by CII GreenCo.
According to Sumit Thakur, Chief Public Relations Officer of Western Railway, both the coaching depots were inspected and all the GreenCo standards were checked by the members of the CII Green Building Council team. All parameters like solar plant, ETP plant, reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, natural lighting, turbo ventilator, rain water harvesting, waste management, saving of electricity and water, green education signage, etc. were found as per the standards of CII GreenCo. The Coach Care Complex at Dr. Ambedkar Nagar and the Coaching Depot at Indore are the first coaching depots on Indian Railways to receive a Silver Rating by CII GreenCo.
To achieve the prestigious GreenCo rating, extra emphasis was put on energy conservation, water conservation, and waste and material management at both the depots. To promote energy conservation, LED lights have been installed across the depots and a 750V supply substation has been built for coach testing in the sick line and pit line, which has led to a reduction in diesel consumption as well as a control of carbon dioxide emissions. At present, the depots produce 10 KW of solar power through the solar panels installed on the premises.
Thakur added that in terms of water conservation, water meters have been installed at various places on the premises to ensure proper record keeping of water consumption. A water recycling plant of 105 KLD capacity has been constructed in the depot for recycling and reusing the water and avoiding wastage. A green patch has been created around the water recycling plant, which has added to the natural beauty of the depot. The consumption of paper has decreased due to online portals like UDM/HRMS/EOffice/CMM/IRPS/GeM being used in all the depots. With the help of UDM, the exchange of materials is done through an online mode, which has saved a lot of manpower and time. A saving of Rs 1,50,800 is ensured by reusing the waste material in the years 2021–22. Additionally, scrap disposal is Material management and segregation of waste are being done in a scientific manner. In the last two years, more emphasis has been given on online training so that the expenditure on it can be controlled.
