WR records highest Scrap sale during lockdown through E-auctions

While the deadly Coronavirus Pandemic lockdown brought everything to a halt and adversely affected the earnings of railways due to non operations of trains in full capacity.

In between WR unlocked a new achievement where the Materials Management department of W.Rly initiated new ways to enhance the earning through sale of unserviceable material (scrap) released from various activities of the railway during the harsh times of Coronavirus Pandemic.

Western Railway has sold scrap materials worth Rs. 45 crore in the lockdown, which is the highest among all railway zones.

According to a press release issued by WR CPRO Sumit Thakur, the Materials Management Dept. of W.Rly identified all the scrap lying along the track lines and workshops in the months of April and May 2020 by all the Divisions under the direction of General Manager of Western Railway. The sale of the scrap started in the month of June 2020 and till now sold scrap worth Rs. 45 crore. The department held e-auctions two times every month through Mahalaxmi, Sabarmati, Pratapnagar Depots and through Mumbai, Vadodara, Ratlam, Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Bhavnagar Divisions in a transparent manner.

These auctions were 100% online, where anybody from any corner of the country could participate. Release materials from track such as unserviceable rails, sleepers and condemned locomotives, coaches, wagons and unserviceable released ferrous and non-ferrous material from various Sheds and Workshops were sold in these e-auctions.

Under the directives of General Manager Alok Kansal and Principal Chief Materials Manager J.P. Pandey, Western Railway has set its target to make the Zonal Railway complete scrap free. Till now, Western Railway has attained the zero-scrap status for 100% Workshops, 65% Stations, 50% Sheds/Depots and 30% Railway Sections.

It is worthwhile to mention that previously Western Railway has achieved the highest scrap sale among all railway zones in the last consecutive two financial years, i.e., Rs. 537 crore & Rs. 533 crore respectively. Western Railway endeavours to achieve 100% scrap free status all of its workplaces by the end of current year.