<p data-path-to-node="3"><b data-path-to-node="3" data-index-in-node="0">NAVI MUMBAI — India’s Flagship Container Gateway Marks Breakthrough on Western Dedicated Freight Corridor with 1.3-Kilometre-Long Multi-Rake Formation Transporting 360 TEUs to Gujarat</b></p><p data-path-to-node="4">In a major operational milestone for national intermodal freight logistics, the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA), in close coordination with Indian Railways and the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL), has commenced full-scale commercial operations of its first long-haul double-stack (D/S) container train.</p><p data-path-to-node="5">The landmark 1.3-kilometre-long formation successfully moved out of the Bharat Mumbai Container Terminals Private Limited (BMCTPL)—operated by PSA International—carrying an unprecedented single-train volume of 360 Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) of import containerized cargo bound for CONCOR’s Gati Shakti Multi-Modal Cargo Terminal (GCT / CGMV) at Varnama in Gujarat's Vadodara Division.</p><p data-path-to-node="7"><b data-path-to-node="7" data-index-in-node="0">High-Capacity 1.3-Kilometre Dual-Rake Train Formation</b></p><p data-path-to-node="8">The long-haul operation was executed by coupling two full-capacity double-stack rakes into a single synchronized freight formation, covering a distance of approximately 422 kilometres along the electrified Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC):</p><ul data-path-to-node="9"><li><p data-path-to-node="9,0,0"><b data-path-to-node="9,0,0" data-index-in-node="0">Leading Rake Formation:</b> Hauled by electric locomotive No. 60311, carrying a load composition of 45+1 wagons with a gross tonnage of 1,817 tonnes (180 TEUs).</p></li><li><p data-path-to-node="9,1,0"><b data-path-to-node="9,1,0" data-index-in-node="0">Trailing Rake Formation:</b> Hauled by electric locomotive No. 24690, carrying a load composition of 45+1 wagons with a gross tonnage of 2,105 tonnes (180 TEUs).</p></li><li><p data-path-to-node="9,2,0"><b data-path-to-node="9,2,0" data-index-in-node="0">Total Carrying Capacity:</b> 360 TEUs aggregated across 90+2 double-stacked container flat wagons, forming a continuous 1.3-km freight payload.</p></li></ul><p data-path-to-node="11"><b data-path-to-node="11" data-index-in-node="0">Slashing Port Dwell Times and Terminal Congestion</b></p><p data-path-to-node="12">Deploying long-haul double-stack container formations delivers transformative operational efficiencies across the EXIM maritime logistics pipeline:</p><ul data-path-to-node="13"><li><p data-path-to-node="13,0,0"><b data-path-to-node="13,0,0" data-index-in-node="0">Accelerated Quayside Evacuation:</b> By consolidating two standard train paths into a single long-haul movement, JNPA can evacuate 360 import boxes simultaneously directly from the quayside, preventing yard saturation during peak vessel discharge windows.</p></li><li><p data-path-to-node="13,1,0"><b data-path-to-node="13,1,0" data-index-in-node="0">Optimization of Network Section Capacity:</b> Merging rakes reduces the total number of individual train paths required across congested suburban rail sections, maximizing throughput velocity along the Western DFC trunk line.</p></li><li><p data-path-to-node="13,2,0"><b data-path-to-node="13,2,0" data-index-in-node="0">Asset and Traction Efficiency:</b> Rolling stock turnaround times are compressed, reducing the requirement for redundant locomotives, line-haul crew allocations, and staging sidings while cutting fuel and electrical energy consumption per TEU-kilometre.</p></li></ul><p data-path-to-node="15"><b data-path-to-node="15" data-index-in-node="0">Catalyzing PM Gati Shakti and National Logistics Targets</b></p><p data-path-to-node="16">Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw highlighted the deployment as a structural leap forward in India's multimodal rail ecosystem, emphasizing that the electrified double-stack long-haul network creates an unhindered high-speed bridge between western seaports and northern and western industrial consumption clusters.</p><p data-path-to-node="17">By providing scheduled, high-capacity rail connectivity from the dock estate straight to inland container depots in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, and the NCR, JNPA's long-haul DFC operations are set to lower landed logistics costs, cut inland transit lead times, and significantly boost the global competitiveness of Indian trade.</p>