Oxygen Express leaves, to be back in Maharashtra on Wed

The first ‘Oxygen Express’, a service of the railways carrying seven tankers that will get liquid oxygen to Maharashtra, departed from Central Railway’s Kalamboli yard on Monday evening

The first ‘Oxygen Express’, a service of the railways carrying seven tankers that will get liquid oxygen to Maharashtra, departed from Central Railway’s Kalamboli yard on Monday evening. The seven tankers will ferry about 105 tonnes of liquid oxygen from Vishakhapatnam steel plant in Andhra Pradesh. The oxygen loaded tankers are expected to arrive in Maharashtra by Wednesday night, from where they will be transport using roll-on, roll-off (Roro) services.

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The train will move via Vasai Road, Jalgaon, Nagpur and Raipur Junction to Visakhapatnam steel plant siding in the East Coast railway zone. Further, the tankers will be loaded with liquid oxygen at the Visakhapatnam steel plant, put on the freight wagon and brought back to Kalamboli in Navi Mumbai. They will then head via road to different locations in Maharashtra.

The railway ministry on Friday approved transportation of liquid medical oxygen in cryogenic tankers under its Roro model as a special case following request from the Maharashtra government.

A green corridor with movement priority will be given to the Oxygen Express. “The express will be given priority. It will take nearly 35 to 40 hours to come back,” said a senior railway official.

Transport minister Anil Parab said the responsibility to coordinate for the transport has been entrusted to his department. “The entire plan for transport oxygen is ready. The day the filled tankers return, a green corridor will be made to transport them on priority to districts that require them,” he said.

State transport commissioner Avinash Dhakne said, “The tankers have been given the status of ambulances. There will be no toll for them, they need not stop anywhere, so it will be ferried faster.”

Meanwhile, the government has pressed in its state transport bus drivers, as there is a shortage of drivers. “Some drivers have gone to their native places. In case there is a need, we will send ST drivers to transport oxygen tankers,” Parab said.

Another similar Oxygen Express is also likely to be operated soon from Boisar railway yard in Palghar district of Maharashtra. Sumit Thakur, chief public relations officer, WR, said, “In Boisar, we are ready and waiting for the rakes.”

The flat wagons being used can accommodate upto 32 tankers. Such trains are already being used for RoRo freight service of the Konkan Railway. “The Mumbai Railways division built a ramp overnight at Kalamboli yard to facilitate loading and unloading of tankers from flat wagons,” said Shivaji Sutar, chief public relations officer, Central Railway.

Earlier, a meeting between railway board officials and state transport commissioners took place on the transportation of liquid oxygen.

(With inputs from Ram Parmar)