CONCOR to Shift Cement Transport from Road to Rail with 1,000 Specialised Tank Containers

Container Corporation of India (CONCOR), being an Indian Railway enterprise, is now in the process of procurement of a thousand special tank containers to serve on the cement transport by rail, thus enhancing bulk cargo logistics towards greener means of transportation.

This initiative comes under the broader umbrella of CONCOR’s program to gradually shift the movement of bulk goods to rail to lower environmental impacts while simultaneously improving efficiency. So far, the company has inducted about 90 such containers supplied by Braithwaite & Co. Ltd., a public-sector enterprise under the Railway Ministry.

This is the first time tank containers have been used by CONCOR to move loose cement by rail. Current operations are sending cement from My Home Cement’s siding at Mellacheruvu in Andhra Pradesh to CONCOR’s Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Whitefield, Bengaluru.

In another big landmark, the first rake carrying 2,199 tonnes of bulk cement from Maha Cement’s Mellacheruvu plant recently arrived at Whitefield ICD. The cement was supplied by Hyderabad-based My Home Cement.

It is expected, say the officials, to significantly curtail transit losses, considerably less than road-based bagged cement transport, and reduce carbon emissions. In this way, by using rail for long-haul transport, CONCOR would enhance turnaround time and eliminate multiple handling of cargo.

The specially designed containers can be used to in bulk large volumes of cement; therefore, they maintain safety, efficiency, and economy. They are also in alignment with the government’s bigger initiative of sustainable logistics and modal shift in freight movement.

The acquisition of 1,000 containers is believed to be a significant step toward restoring India’s cement supply chain infrastructure and achieving the decarbonisation targets.