Recently Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) unveiled India’s first ever Stainless Steel EMU. It was rolled out for Eastern Railway. The official press release containing a few pictures of the rake can be seen here. Few more pictures can be seen on page 7 of this document. A commuter in Kolkata has even managed to get a video of one of the test runs of the rake! It can be seen here.
It is not possible to give a precise review of the rake without having a look at it in person, but it looks promising at least as far as quality is concerned. Its external finishing is top notch. There are absolutely no uneven patches, wavy sidewalls or crudely finished welding joints on the exterior. Whereas in MRVC rakes you can make out wavy surfaces, welding lines and a lot more even in a photo. In terms of exterior finishing, this rake goes right at the top of the chart alongside Jessop. Hoping that the interior is equally good!
The body shell has a new design. Its NOT the same old ICF design with corten steel replaced with stainless steel! It looks more like some metro rail rake than an IR rake. Thumbs up to BEML for this! The experience they gained while building coaches for Delhi Metro clearly shows up in the quality of this rake. I hope to see more of these rakes on IR.
Alas, MUTP-2 rakes will be manufactured by ICF. Mumbai will get the same old design, with horrible bodywork & poor finishing as a bonus. To add salt to the wound, the bigwigs at ICF and MRVC will shout at the top of their voices that these rakes are the best. How I wish those people get an experience of “waterfall” at the doors of MRVC rakes resulting due to improperly welded rain water channels!
MRVC Mania - MRVC rakes & more! 
The seats look as if they’ve been put straight from earlier 6 coaches EMU had.
[…] […]
It’s May 2013 and already a few months since we in Mumbai are suffering the shoddy ICF rakes in WR Locals. I wonder how the railways technical guys / management missed the following gross points;
1. In the 4 machine coaches, 1 out of 3 exit doors along with the passage are closed i.e. occupied by the machine. Surely a very very retrograde step. It robs the passengers of 33% getting in and getting out capacity for the coach and substantial passage standing place. This is a big drawback in the always crowded Mumbai locals. I think Mumbai locals even about 50 years ago were not like this.
2. Ventilation and Fan workings are not even half as good as the Siemens rakes.
3. I thought noisy compressors are a part of my childhood memory of the Mumbai locals. Well they are back with these “latest” locals.
4. The energy efficient REGENERATIVE BRAKING system also does not seem to be as good and efficient as the Siemens rakes. I have observed Siemens rakes braking to almost 4 to 5 kmph with regenerative brakes alone. In these “latest” rakes one can hear brakes squealing much earlier even as the train enters the platform.
5. The acceleration, speed and braking of these “latest” trains is also much poorer than the Siemens rakes.
I believe that we the Mumbai passengers exist only to keep the raddi ICF operating with the help of spurious contractors who finance the ambitions of railway servants to reach ever higher levels in the hierarchy to enjoy ever increasing employment and post retirement privileges.
Rajeev,
These new rakes are nothing but old wine in new bottle. They are not as advanced as Siemens rakes. To keep things simple, you can say that they are technologically somewhat similar to the old DC rakes.
They do not have regenerative braking at all. They fully rely on conventional brakes. Yes, they are indeed a retrograde step.
Dear Akshay,
Why are passenger associations and others silent on the issue? I used to travel by Car daily from Borivali to Fountain. However, ever since Siemens rakes came in i switched to Trains. Although crowded, things are not as bad in the Siemens rakes. Now is this retrograde step not a fraud on the passengers? Is this not dereliction of duty / responsibility if not favoring of inept contractors at ICF for corrupt purposes? Nowadays i worry when see an increasing number of these ICF rakes on the WR. We will be saddled by these for the next 20 years – and my working life will be over by then!! I literally curse the inept and useless railway managers / administrators for giving us these inferior rakes when far better options are available. After all their greed and apathy put me and millions of others in avoidable stress for a good 2 hours every working day!
What can be done about this?
Best Regards,
Rajeev Parashar
[…] You Tube ← BEML rolls out India’s First Stainless Steel EMU! […]
THe new latest rakes (Only AC, which came after Siemens Rakes) are not new rakes but retrofitted old ICF chennai EMU rakes.
The new rakes are yet to arrive from Bombardier
This was done to augment the process of DC-AC conversion in CR. There are many DC rakes in CR which are being phased out.
The AC-DC siemens rake from WR are being shifted to CR.
To replace these shifted rakes, the old DC rakes are beng retrofitted with the same design of the Chennai EMU, which sucks!!!
I think Mumbai Workshop earlier did a fantastic job of converting an old DC rake to an AC-DC rake which was rechristened as the “Millenium Rake”(Train No. 931). The same stuff could ghave been followed, but guess IR may be saving some bucks with the Chennai design (with the middle door of the motor coach bein closed and occupied by machinery).
Dear Kaykhusru,
While it is true that many old DC rakes have been retrofitted with AC, the 4XXXX series rakes were introduced brand new from ICF.
In fact the retrofitted DC rakes are better than the new ICF 4XXXX series.
It may also interest you that the current GM of WR was a key figure in the ICF some what responsible for the shoddy product we see on the WR. Also, he assumes charge as the GM when the WR is poised to take delivery of additional 73 rakes from the ICF.
Also if you recall, it was only recently that the beans regarding posts of GMs, Members RB etc being sponsored by Contractors at an auction were split wide in the open.
Each rake costs Rs.30 Cr multiplied by about 80 rakes = Rs.2,400 Cr. Most of the work is out sourced to Contractors – Indian Contractors. NOW CONNECT THE DOTS. These Dots and connections are not of my making.
Further note that companies like Siemens, Alstom, Bombardier are by a UN sponsored initiative and Law as in force in their countries, liable to be prosecuted in their Country if it is found that they have indulged in a corrupt practice, howsoever small, in any other Country. It is for this reason that Siemens voluntarily backed out of MRVC projects or any World bank aided project in the World for a period of 3 years. They were suspected of having influenced a decision in some other Country. It is also because of this Law and obligation taken seriously by the West that you had the Augusta Westland helicopter deal, the Scorpene sub deal, etc bursting on the Indian scene. The chaps who bribed were caught abroad leading to discomfiture to the takers here.
Therefore you now have a ICF with its Contractor – Officer webs to take care of the enrichment at Commuters expense.
It took me just 10 minutes to realise that the ICF 4XXXX series rakes are bad. If the dots were indeed not connected then how do you explain an experienced railway engineer also the then GM, subsequently arrested, praising the Rakes as most advanced with better this and better that.
Look am not at all resentful of his ill gotten wealth. All i care about is that these rakes will be there for the next 20 to 25 years and cause daily misery to lakhs of commuters.
Lets hope that the present incumbent will take care that the newer rakes are at least as good as the Siemens ones even if the dots are connected. Otherwise it will be worse than dacoity.