Railway Board Puts Dankuni–Surat DFC on Fast Track, Orders Fresh DPR and Time-Bound Execution

The Railway Board has directed the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Ltd (DFCCIL) to fast-track implementation of the newly announced Dankuni–Surat Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) and update its Detailed Project Report (DPR) with current costings and timelines. The 2,100-km greenfield corridor, announced in the Union Budget 2026–27, will link Dankuni in West Bengal with Surat in Gujarat via Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra, creating a high-capacity freight spine between eastern and western India.

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has asked DFCCIL to immediately formalise optimal technical standards for the project, incorporating high-capacity electrification, elimination of all level crossings, and advanced signalling systems such as Kavach to boost safety and throughput. The Board has also told DFCCIL to divide the DFC into multiple implementation stretches with dedicated core teams stationed in the field, list and fast-track all pre-construction activities, and begin contract document preparation in parallel to avoid rollout delays.

The revised DPR will factor in updated expenditure estimates and phasing, giving Railways clearer visibility on budgeting and execution schedules. Once completed, the Dankuni–Surat DFC is expected to significantly improve freight flows from ports in Maharashtra and Gujarat towards the east, cut transit times for goods trains, decongest existing mixed-traffic routes and support the development of Gati Shakti cargo terminals and logistics hubs along the alignment.