Railways trial run of double stacked dwarf container train gets through: JNPT

• Railways successfully completed the trial run of double-stacked dwarf container train, said JNPT

• In comparison with regular containers, the 'Dwarf' containers are 662 mm short but 162 mm wider and carry 67% higher volume

Mumbai: Indian Railways has conducted a successful trial run of double-stacked dwarf container train from Mehsana in Gujarat to Jawaharlal Nehru Port, a release said on Thursday. The train with five wagons of double-stacked dwarf containers arrived at the Port on Thursday at 11:30 am and departed at 1 pm, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) said in an official statement.

The government-run port operator also said that "it is in the process of finalising an operator for 'management, maintenance and operations of a dedicated dwarf container depot (D-Depot) inside the Port area". Indian Railways has given a 17 percent discount on haulage cost for double-stack dwarf container trains compared to double stack ISO container trains coupled with additional volume benefit, JNPT said.

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At the D-Depot ISO containers for exports and imports will be de-stuffed/restuffed and then re-stuffed in the dwarf containers for further movement on the rail to and from Jawaharlal Nehru Port, added the statement.

Double stacked dwarf container train

In comparison with regular containers, the 'Dwarf' containers are 662 mm short but 162 mm wider. These containers provide as much as 67 percent higher volume when double-stacked and can carry a weight of 71 tons, against 40 tons by a regular ISO container. The introduction of dwarf container would be a game-changer as the rail movement of EXIM cargo through double stacked dwarf containers would significantly provide a cost advantage to the customers and enhance rail traffic at the Port, JNPT said.

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