2 private freight terminals to come up

HYDERABAD: South Central Railway is processing applications for setting up two private freight terminals (PFTs), one at Thimmapur and the other at Nagulapally in Hyderabad. According to SC railway chief operations manager Sunil K Agarwal, the two new PFTs would be the first of their kind in the state. They will do the work of handling cargo hitherto being done by the railways at their sidings.  For the Thimmapur PFT,  Continental Multi-Modal Logistics Limited has applied for setting it up. “We will process the application within a month and send it to the Railway board for final clearance,” Agarwal said. For the Nagulapalli PFT, Container Corporation of India (PSU)  will be the partner, he said. For Thimmapur, it might cost about Rs.8 crore excluding the cost of the land which the private company would have to acquire to facilitate laying of rail line,” he said.SCR , which ranks fourth in the country in freight loading is keen on improving its performance. “Last year (2010-11) we did 96 million tonnes. This year we want to increase it to 106 million tonnes,” Agarwal said. In the first quarter (Q1) this year, the SC Railway has done 24.8 million tonnes as against 22.01 million tonnes during the Q1 of last year which is a 12.5 per cent growth.He said 70 per cent of the total revenue that SC Railways earns comes from freight. For the period from April to June, 2011, freight earnings were Rs.1347 crore. There is a growth of 13.32 per cent in freight earnings compared to Rs.1188.69 crore for the corresponding period last year.