Key Points

"On World Environment Day, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shares how Indian Railways is playing a key role in building a greener future. With rapid electrification and a shift to clean energy, it is on track to achieve net zero emissions," the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement on X in response to the minister's article.

"Every time you choose to travel by train over other modes, you're not just choosing comfort or convenience -- you're choosing a cleaner, greener Bharat. More than 700 crore people chose to travel in Indian Railways last year. It's our lifeline, and a green promise for tomorrow," Vaishnaw wrote in an article on the World Environment Day.

The minister stated that Indian Railways is helping the country move closer to the 'Panchamrit' goals given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi -- net zero by 2070. Railways is enabling this through a multi-pronged approach by shifting traffic from road to rail and powering operations with cleaner, greener energy sources. Together, these moves are helping India decarbonise its economy at scale.

"PM Modi set 2030 as the year to achieve net zero for Indian Railways. Due to the accelerated electrification and large-scale shifting of cargo from road to rail, Indian Railways is on track to achieve net zero (Scope 1) within 2025 itself," Vaishnaw said.

In 2013-14, Railways carried about 1,055 million tonnes of cargo. This has increased to 1,617 million tonnes in 2024-25, making our Railway the second largest cargo carrying railway in the world. Using the computations done by experts, this shift of cargo from road to rail has helped our country save over 143 million tons of CO2 emissions. That's like planting 121 crore trees, Vaishnaw explained.

Transporting goods by rail costs nearly half of what it does by road. This means big savings, not just for businesses, but for the entire economy. This shift has helped save Rs 3.2 lakh crore in logistics costs over the last decade, he added.

Vaishnaw further stated that Railways are also much cleaner, releasing 90 per cent less carbon dioxide than trucks. That's less smoke in our skies and cleaner air for us. This road to rail transition has saved us 2,857 crore litres of diesel, roughly translating to savings of Rs 2 lakh crore in fuel costs.

"In the 60 years before 2014, Indian Railways electrified 21,000 kilometers of track. And in the last 11 years, we have electrified 47,000 kilometers. Today 99 per cent of the country's broad gauge network is electrified," the minister pointed out.

Railways is increasingly using green energy for stations, factories and workshops. Now it is working with states to get more green energy for running the trains. This will all lead to India achieving its net zero goal, Vaishnaw added.

- IANS