Robots to manufacture 'Make in India' metro coaches in Rae Bareli

In what will go down as a milestone, for the first time Indian Railways will manufacture metro rail coaches at its Rae Bareli factory. It will be done under the Make in India scheme, an official said. Moreover the coaches will be manufactured by robots and will be of the same standard as Canada-manufactured Bombardier that is currently being used in the metro services of the country.

Additionally, the homemade coaches will be 40 per cent cheaper than those brought in from China and other countries. These coaches will be equipped with Wi-Fi, CCTV cameras, mobile charging points among other facilities.

There will also be a host of safety features including signalling, door control and train management systems along with modern surveillance gadgets on board. "We already have had two meetings with the government on producing metro coaches. The Maharashtra government has given its approval for coaches for two metro trains," said Rajesh Agarwal, member (rolling stock), Railway Board.

Agarwal further added that they are making a total of six metro coaches currently. The cost of each coach would be Rs 8 crore, which is significantly cheaper than the ones procured from China. The Chinese coaches cost around Rs 12 crore. The board has decided to go for standardised coaches and has asked the Research Designs & Standards Organisation (RDSO) and the Modern Coach Factory (MCF) to invest in making it a reality, the official said.

Agarwal said the expansion of the MCF at a cost of Rs 480 crore - including recruitment of experts and technicians on a large scale - will be completed by December 2018. "It will also be the first factory in the country where coaches will be produced by robots," he said.

(With PTI inputs; edited by Anwesha Madhukalya)