Indian Railways to conduct second pre-bid meeting for Private Player Train project today

After the success of first pre-bid meeting held on July 21, the Indian Railways is set to conduct the second round of the same for Private Player Train project today. The government hopes that more private players will come forward and participate in the pre-Bid meeting. Scheduled for today, the second bid meeting will be the last, where Railways will invite bids from private players on September 8.  

Railways is bullish that the private player operated train project will lead to a private investment of Rs 30,000 crore. The national transporter plans to run the first private train by April 2023.  

As of now, the second round is expected to be attended by: IRCTC, BHEL, RITES, BHARAT FORGE, BOMBARDIER INDIA, GMR GROUP, GATEWAY RAIL,  VEDANTA, MEDHA, CAF (Australian Firm) and R K Associates-Catering. 

The project aims to bring in new technologies, boost revenues and create more job opportunities. There are plans to run 151 private trains in addition to the trains which have already been running. 

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The government believes that multiple operators in train operations will create competition and improve service delivery. This is the first initiative of private investment for running Passenger Trains over Indian Railways Network. The project would entail private sector investment of about Rs 30,000 crore. 

The first round of pre Bid meeting was very successful with as many as 16 prospective applicants or private players participating. These included: GMR Group, PSUs, BHEL, RITES, IRCTC, Bombardier, Medha Engineering, Bharat Forge, Gateway Rail and even Australian firm CAF. 

The initiative is towards improving the availability of transportation services to the people of the nation, introduce modern technology rolling stock, boost job opportunities and new services that would improve the overall travel experience of passengers.