Akshay Satnaliwala was on the same flight as Ashwini Vaishnaw on Februray 2 (File)
Entrepreneur Akshay Satnaliwala could hardly imagine that a business proposal to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on a paper napkin during a flight would spring the railway administration into action in no time.
Eastern Railway general manager Milind K Deouskar and other senior officers met Mr Satnaliwala at the ER headquarters in Kolkata and discussed the freight prospects suggested by his firm, an official said.
ER spokesperson Kausik Mitra said Mr Satnaliwala, director of a solid waste management company in Bengal, "explained the schematic flow of solid waste to various industries with prospective buyers in different parts of the country like Raipur in Chhattisgarh and Rajgangpur in Odisha and other clusters through the railways".
He said the ER general manager, responding to the business proposals by Mr Satnaliwala, offered flexible terms for carrying solid and other waste through the rail route as a cheaper mode of transport.
"Such bulk quantity transport of solid and plastic waste through the rail route will not only be beneficial for the company but will help recycle waste, reducing pollution at the same time," Mr Mitra said.
The Kolkata-based entrepreneur, who was on a Delhi-Kolkata flight with Ashwini Vaishnaw on February 2, hurriedly wrote a proposal for solid waste movement by rail freight on a paper napkin as it was the only piece of paper he could lay his hands on at the time.
"Sir, if you allow, I would like to present how railways can be an integral part of the supply chain of AFR (alternative fuel and raw material) to cement plants and also contribute to our PM's Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan," Mr Satnaliwala said.
Mr Satnaliwala claimed in his appeal to the minister that the company he represents was the first in the country to send plastic waste by a railway rake in July 2022 when 3,500 metric tonnes was sent in a single consignment from the ER's Chitpur railway siding to a cement plant in Rajgangpur.
Apart from the general manager, ER's principal chief commercial manager and principal chief operations manager were present at the meeting.
The young entrepreneur managed to hand over the handwritten business proposal to Mr Vaishnaw during the midnight flight on February 2. To his surprise, he received a call from the ER GM's office within six minutes of landing at the NSCBI Airport and a meeting with Mr Deouskar was scheduled for February 6.
Mr Satnaliwala was asked by senior ER officials to submit a proposal for a station-to-station rate facility with a commitment to traffic movement, Mr Mitra said.
The entrepreneur thanked the Rail Minister and the ER for responding to his proposal.
"I am happy that the Rail Ministry acknowledged my proposal and given me a chance to present it in the presence of all senior officials of Eastern Railways," Mr Satnaliwala said.
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