Trials of India's First Hydrogen-Powered Train Set To Start In 2025

NEW DELHI: Indian Railways is set to embark on a historic journey with the introduction of its hydrogen-powered train. It will cover a 90-kilometer distance from Jind to Sonipat in Haryana and is scheduled for trial runs in January 2025. The Integral Coach Factory in Tamil Nadu is where the locomotive was designed.

Fuel cell-powered trains use a combination of hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity. Water vapor, the process' sole output, is a sustainable substitute for traditional diesel engines and a step toward the railways' ambitious target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.

The total costs amount to an astounding Rs. 80 crores for each train and an additional Rs. 70 crores to create the ground infrastructure for running train services in mountainous and heritage terrain. Likewise, at this moment, Indian Railways is developing hydrogen-based maintenance options that include procuring five hydrogen-powered tower cars for Rs. 10 crores each.

Furthermore, a trial project worth Rs. 111.83 crores for hydrogen fuel cells further providing a test platform for a DEMU rake is ongoing. It too will be brought up on the Jind-Sonipat stretch.

Indian Railways has engaged the German firm TUV-SUD to conduct independent safety evaluations, the key concerns in the project being safety and operational reliability. With this partnership, India becomes part of nations like China, Germany, France, and Sweden, who have already divulged hydrogen train technology.

If the trials are successful, the railway network is expected to launch hydrogen trains on other routes by the end of 2025, ushering in a new era of eco-friendly transportation in the country. 

Long-term advantages of hydrogen trains are anticipated to include zero emissions and less air pollution, despite their higher initial costs as compared to diesel-powered alternatives.

The cost should eventually go down as green technology advances and production scales up. India's attempts to update its transportation infrastructure and create a cleaner, greener future have advanced significantly with the introduction of hydrogen-powered trains.

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