Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the completed 2,800-kilometer Dedicated Freight Corridor project during the 'Namo for Viksit Bharat' programme in Vadodara, Gujarat. The Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors now serve as the main foundation of India's trade and commerce, with more than 430 freight trains running daily on these corridors. The project has significantly improved logistics efficiency, reducing freight train travel time from 6.5 hours to under 3.25 hours for 100 kilometers, and cutting truck-equivalent travel time from 30 hours to 10-12 hours for the same distance.
The PM highlighted the project's history, noting that conception began in 2004 with a special company created in 2006, but zero kilometers were completed until 2014. Since then, the government accelerated the project to completion. The corridor features double-stack container trains capable of transporting goods equivalent to more than 250 trucks in a single trip from JNPT Mumbai port to Vadodara.
Significant railway manufacturing achievements were announced: India has produced nearly 50,000 modern railway coaches and approximately 250,000 freight wagons since 2014. The current rail budget exceeds ₹2.75 lakh crore, many times higher than 12 years ago, creating thousands of employment opportunities during construction and enabling new industrial development around transportation infrastructure.
On renewable energy, India has developed over 200 gigawatts of solar PV module manufacturing capacity, enabling the PM Surya Ghar Free Electricity Scheme that has seen 5.5 million families install rooftop solar plants nationwide, including 1.1 million families in Gujarat. The speech also emphasized India's focus on AI readiness and free online coaching for competitive exams to support youth skill development.