Make In India Kick-Starts, Railways Ink Deal with GE & Alstom


BANGALORE: ‘Make in India’ is finally being realized as the Ministry of Railways signed agreements with global biggies like Alstom and GE Transport to begin a project worth 40,000 Cr. The project focuses on building locomotive manufacturing factories in Madhepura and Marhaura in Bihar, reports ET.

The importance of the event of signing the agreements reflected with the presence of seven Cabinet ministers, including Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu. The projects were announced a decade back by the railway minister then, Lalu Yadav and it has finally entered its execution phase. Within this period of a decade the tenders for the setting up the factories were floated and cancelled a lot of times.

Richard Verma and Francois Richier, ambassadors of U.S. and France, represented GE and Alstom at the event whereas JDU leader Sharad Yadav attended the event representing Bihar.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley referred the event as a big achievement as the global giants are collaborating in the country’s infrastructure. "It is a win-win situation for all stakeholders. It will help in railways modernization, boost economy of Bihar and create a favorable ecosystem for growth in the country."

According to Prabhu, the entry of GM and Alstom will promote of manufacture of other items and ancillaries in the country. “The SMEs will see a vertical and horizontal expansion. The spin-off benefits will be massive,” he added.

The project includes manufacturing of 1,000 state-of-the-art diesel locos Marhaura in the upcoming 11 years by GE Transport at a cost of 14,656 Cr whereas 800 electric locos will be manufactured within the same time span by Alstom at 19,904 Cr.

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