The Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) has cancelled the tender that was issued for a private technology partner and decided to distribute the manufacturing work among three railway production units. The trains will be built simultaneously at factories in Chennai, Kapurthala and Rae Bareli.
According to MRVC Chairman and Managing Director Vilas Wadekar, the new approach is expected to speed up the delivery of the AC local trains. The first AC local is expected in 2027, while the entire fleet of 238 trains is planned to be completed by 2030.
The decision comes as several major projects are being taken up to expand the capacity of Mumbai’s suburban railway network. Around ₹22,000 crore is being invested in projects such as new corridors, additional railway lines, platform extensions for 15-coach trains and yard redevelopment.
The government had already approved the purchase of 238 additional AC local trains for Mumbai as part of these plans.
The procurement process was earlier being handled with the help of a private technology partner. Under that plan, however, the first train was expected to be delivered only by 2030, while the entire fleet would not have been available until 2034.
MRVC officials were concerned that such a long delivery schedule could affect the progress of Mumbai’s railway infrastructure projects. The corporation therefore decided to manufacture the trains through Indian Railways’ own production facilities.
The three factories selected for the project are the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai, the Rail Coach Factory (RCF) in Kapurthala and the Modern Coach Factory (MCF) in Rae Bareli.
All three units will work on the trains simultaneously. This parallel production is expected to bring the first batch of 238 AC local trains into service much earlier than the earlier plan.
The move is aimed at strengthening Mumbai’s suburban rail network and increasing the availability of air-conditioned local services as passenger demand continues to grow.
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