UPSC By Aptness.ai
PIB digest for Tuesday, 13 October

Indian Railways Freight Loading Grows in 2026

Ministry of Railways · Economy · Posted 13 OCT 2026 1:00PM

What happened

Indian Railways reported a 6.14% growth in freight loading in September 2026, reaching 135.35 million tonnes compared to September 2025. Cumulative freight loading for the first half of the financial year also rose by 4.1% to reach 833.7 million tonnes.

Why it matters for UPSC

This performance reflects industrial demand and logistics efficiency, which is important for the Indian economy and infrastructure growth under the UPSC General Studies Paper-III syllabus.

Key objectives

  1. Loaded 135.35 million tonnes of freight in September 2026, marking a 6.14% growth year-on-year.
  2. Food grain loading grew by 25%, clinker by 20%, and domestic containers by 10%.
  3. Average daily coal rakes supplied to power houses increased by 11.6% to 443 rakes per day.
  4. Cumulative freight loading for April-September 2026 reached 833.7 million tonnes, a 4.1% rise.