January 9th 2025.
In a recent event, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw proudly announced that the Indian Railways has successfully developed a hydrogen fuel-powered train engine with the highest horsepower in the world. He shared this news during a plenary session called "Green Connections: Diaspora's Contribution to Sustainable Development" at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention in Bhubaneswar. According to Vaishnaw, only four countries currently have the capability to produce such engines, with an output of 500 to 600 horsepower. However, the engine produced by Indian Railways using indigenous technology boasts an impressive 1,200 horsepower, making it the most powerful in its category.
Excitingly, Vaishnaw revealed that the first trial run of this groundbreaking train will take place soon in Haryana, on the Jind-Sonipat route. While the manufacturing of the engine has been completed, the team is currently working on system integration. Vaishnaw also emphasized the potential of India's own technological achievements to create spin-off products and services. He believes that the success of the hydrogen-run train engine can pave the way for similar technology to be used in other vehicles such as trucks and tugboats.
The Railway Minister further explained that the development of indigenous technology can lead to the creation of derivative technologies for various applications. He expressed confidence in India's ability to achieve technological self-sufficiency and emphasized the need to focus on different parts of the value chain. Joining the panel discussion, Hambyarajen Narasinghaen, the junior minister of Foreign Affairs of Mauritius, highlighted the challenges of climate change in his country and sought support from India in providing green technology solutions.
Other notable speakers in the plenary session included Regional Integration and International Trade of Mauritius Rahul Fotedar, Founder & CTO of Morrow Batteries of Norway, Jagdish Nainwal, CEO of UPL for LATAM, Mexico, Indronil Sengupta, Swiss Biotech Association of Swizerland, Jitendra Kr. Sachdeva, Group President, SkipperSeil Ltd, Nigeria, Kishore Reddy, and Anju Virmani. Outside of the conference, Vaishnaw also spoke to reporters and revealed the Centre's plans to transform Odisha into a major Information Technology hub within the next two to three years. He shared that this has been discussed with Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, and the process will begin in a couple of months. As an MP from Odisha, Vaishnaw also assured that the Centre is taking steps to provide proper training to the youth to make the state a hub for IT.
In addition, Vaishnaw mentioned that the Centre has already announced railway projects worth over Rs 1 lakh crore for Odisha, and the construction work for these projects has been expedited. He also held discussions with the Chief Minister regarding the development of railway infrastructure in the state. To further support the state's growth, Vaishnaw announced that the Railways will run a special train from Odisha to Uttar Pradesh for the upcoming Maha Kumbh-2025 at Prayagraj. The future looks bright for Odisha, with the support of the Centre and the efforts of its leaders.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
