The rail ministry said Railways is also giving discounts to make its freight movement attractive (File)
Indian Railways' freight made the highest ever loading of 114.8 Metric Tonne (MT) for the month of May and earned Rs 11,604.94 crore from freight loading, said the Ministry of Railways on Tuesday.
"In May 2021 it is 114.8 MT which is 9.7 per cent more than May 2019 (104.6 MT) for the same period," the official statement said.
The important items transported during May 2021 includes 54.52 million tonnes of coal, 15.12 million tonnes of iron ore, 5.61 million tonnes of foodgrains, 3.68 million tonnes of fertilizers, 3.18 million tonnes of mineral oil, 5.36 million tonnes of cement (excluding clinker) and 4.2 million tonnes of clinker.
"Wagon turn-around time has seen an improvement of 26 per cent in this month. In May, 2021, wagon turn-around time is registered at 4.81 days as compared to 6.46 in May 2019," the statement said.
The ministry said that a number of concessions or discounts are also being given by Indian Railways to make its freight movement very attractive.
Speed of freight trains has been doubled over the last 18 months, saving costs for stakeholders, it said.
"Few zones (around four) have registered an average speed of freight trains even above 50 Kmph. Due to geographical conditions, certain sections offer good speed to freight trains. An average speed of 45.6 Kmph is registered in May 2021 for freight trains which are 26 per cent more as compared to 36.19 kmph for the same period," it added.