The recent introduction of the ‘Round-trip traffic’ concept saw the first rake of South Central Railway utilised by Bharathi Cements, based at Yerraguntla in the district.
Under the concept, clinker from the plant’s siding was loaded to Krishnapatnam port for export to Sri Lanka and in the return direction the rake brought the pet coke imported from the USA to the plant. The concept was introduced to enhance freight loading basket, attract new traffic and also to divert the traffic moving by road.
Under the win-win scheme, the consignor (Bharathi Cements, in this case) commits to offer traffic in return direction, for which it is charged at a lower tariff, while the railways get revenue for the return direction too. By availing of the concession, Bharathi Cements gets a benefit to the tune of ₹8.7 lakh by way of reduced freight charges and the railways earned ₹15 lakh for the return direction, which otherwise would have been empty haulage.Kadapa region, which has two major cement clusters, has a lot of scope to the companies in transporting cement and clinker to ports and by importing coke in the return direction. South Central Railway (SCR) General Manager Gajanan Mallya has appreciated the efforts of the Guntakal division officials in creating awareness among the freight customers about the benefits of the innovative concept.
