Government has been eyeing the development of Indian Railways on a huge scale and they have been taking baby steps by improving the conditions on Railway platforms and trains- sanitation, cleanliness, quality of food, punctuality, complaint and suggestions among many others.
Our ministers are in constant talks with Japan for proper implementation of technologies and infrastructure and it is assisting the government in revamping the Indian Railways by improvising the trains and infrastructure with a whopping $140 Billion investment and nearly 400 stations are listed for the development.
Japan will provide its expertise in solving problems of sanitation including the development of waterless, odourless toilets in trains and stations. Japanese officials have also agreed to assist Indian Railways in the zero-accident mission and development of a legal and regulatory framework on high speed railway.A Japanese delegation will soon visit India to study the opportunities for industries in the railway station development.
Another development is that of Google partnering with Indian Railways for the “Project Nilgiri” to provide free WiFi across 400 stations and for this Google Fiber will be making its way to India which is popularly known to provide fast broadband in the USA. The services aims at providing seamless network connectivity in select railway Stations across India.
In the first phase, WiFi hotspots will be set up across India over a span of 4 months after which the passengers will be able to access the WiFi after a mobile verification and a one-time password (OTP) sent over SMS and the passengers will have 34 minutes of uninterrupted service after which the speed will reduce but the connectivity will remain.
By: Archa Dave
