Lok Sabha Question No. 60 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2016-11-16
Subject: Old Coaches
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: INNOCENT

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 60 TO BE ANSWERED ON 16.11.2016

## OLD COACHES

60.    SHRI INNOCENT:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether old coaches that have outlived their utility,  are  widely deployed  in  express  trains  across  the  country,  posing  a  major safety issue;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the total number of coaches which  are  more  than  twenty  years  old  and  are  still  being deployed in trains, zone-wise;
- (c) the reasons for delay in replacement of old coaches; and
- (d) the corrective steps taken by Railways in this regard?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

(SHRI RAJEN GOHAIN)

- (a)  to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

*****

STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (d)  OF UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  60 BY SHRI INNOCENT  TO BE ANSWERED  IN LOK SABHA  ON  16.11.2016  REGARDING  OLD COACHES

(a):  No, Madam. Passenger coaches that have outlived their utility are not deployed in express trains. The prescribed codal life of ICF (Integral Coach Factory) type of coaches is 25 years and that of LHB (Linke Hofmann Busch) type of coaches is 35 years. Replacement of coaches on age-cum-condition basis is a continual process.

(b):  As  per  the  holding  of  coaches  as  on  31.03.16,  the  number  of coaches  more  than  20  year  old  that  are  still  being  deployed  in trains, zone-wise, is as under:

| Zonal railway              |   Number of coaches which are more than twenty years old and deployed in trains |
|----------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Central Railway            |                                                                             718 |
| Eastern Railway            |                                                                             757 |
| East Central Railway       |                                                                             375 |
| East Coast Railway         |                                                                             223 |
| Northern Railway           |                                                                             821 |
| North Central Railway      |                                                                             183 |
| North Eastern Railway      |                                                                             232 |
| North Frontier Railway     |                                                                             228 |
| North Western Railway      |                                                                             239 |
| Southern Railway           |                                                                             752 |
| South Central Railway      |                                                                             591 |
| South Eastern Railway      |                                                                             458 |
| South East Central Railway |                                                                              98 |
| South Western Railway      |                                                                             423 |
| Western Railway            |                                                                             536 |
| West Central Railway       |                                                                             105 |
| Total                      |                                                                            6739 |

All these coaches are within the prescribed codal life of 25/35 years as mentioned in (a) above.

(c): Does not arise.

(d): Replacement of old coaches by new coaches are done regularly on case to case basis depending upon condition and codal life of old coaches. This is an on-going exercise.

*****