The South Central Railway, one of the major freight loading zones on the Indian Railways network, added two more goods terminals by commencing operations at greenfield Private Freight Terminals (PFTs) despite the unprecedented lockdown constraints due to outbreak of the pandemic this month.
Lakshminarasimha Infra Pvt Ltd at Nagireddypalli railway station of Yadadri Bhongir district was commissioned on May 8 and Sri Lakshmi Venkateshwara Warehousing & PFT Pvt. Ltd at Kaukuntla Railway station of Mahbubnagar district started its operation on May 25, Monday.
In the last couple of months, freight and parcel services to ensure supply of essential commodities like foodgrains, milk, milk products, fruits, fish, eggs and other perishable items were being transported through 'Dhood Duronto' specials, 'Jai Kisan' freight trains etc.
The first freight train loaded with boiled rice of 2,400 tonnes to Arakkonam junction in Tamil Nadu started from Nagireddypalli railway station early this month and this new loading spot will serve customers hailing from Yadadri Bhongir, Jangaon and Nalgonda districts for transportation of foodgrains.
The second one at Kaukuntla railway station has started its first train operations loaded with boiled rice of 2,400 tonnes to Erode station in Tamil Nadu. A warehouse with a capacity 1.3 lakh metric tonnes established inside the PFT and was taken over by Food Corporation of India (FCI) for three years for preserving and transportation of foodgrains by rail to different parts of the country.
This PFT is to serve as nearest rail head for Mahabubnagar, Wanaparthy, Jogulamba Gadwal, Nagarkurnool, an official spokesman said on Tuesday.
