Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the Indian Railways recorded a year of strong all-round performance in 2025-26, achieving record freight loading while advancing passenger services, infrastructure, safety systems and digital initiatives, with freight transportation reaching a historic high of 1,670 million tonnes during the year.
The growth suggested Indian Railways’ capacity to handle key commodities such as coal, cement, fertilisers and food grains, sustaining critical supply chains. The union minister also highlighted the progress, noting record freight and passenger performance, expansion of Vande Bharat services such as sleeper variants and improvements in safety and infrastructure. Vaishnaw said rail operations remained robust, with around 25,000 trains running daily.
Additional special trains were introduced during peak demand periods to enhance passenger convenience and accessibility, according to the Union Minister. On the manufacturing front, Indian Railways produced 1,674 locomotives and 6,677 LHB coaches, strengthening its ‘Make in India’ push while improving safety and travel comfort.
Passenger services saw further modernisation with the rollout of Vande Bharat Sleeper trains, complementing the existing Vande Bharat and Amrit Bharat services, particularly for long-distance travel. Safety initiatives gathered pace with the expansion of the indigenous Kavach Automatic Train Protection System, now commissioned over 3,100 route kilometres, with implementation underway on an additional 24,400 km.
Digital transformation remained a focus area, with the launch of the RailOne App in July 2025 offering a unified platform for ticket booking, train enquiries and grievance redressal.
Efforts to improve transparency also led to the removal of more than 3.04 crore suspicious user accounts. Infrastructure development continued with the commissioning of 35 Gati Shakti Cargo Terminals and the redevelopment of 119 stations under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme.
Connectivity was also enhanced in key regions, including the extension of rail links to Aizawl (Mizoram) and improved all-weather connectivity to Jammu and Kashmir. IANS
