Bhubaneswar: The East Coast Railway (ECoR) has once again set a milestone in freight loading, becoming the first railway zone in the country to achieve 250 million tonne (MT) of originating freight in the financial year 2024-25. The remarkable achievement was accomplished ahead of schedule—by March 21, 2025—11 days before the end of the financial year. ECoR’s freight loading record surpasses all previous benchmarks of Indian Railways, reinforcing its status as the highest freight-loading zone in the country. This is the second consecutive year that ECoR has crossed the 250 MT mark. Notably, ECoR has also achieved the distinction of surpassing 200 MT of freight loading for the sixth consecutive year.
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Additionally, ECoR has released and unloaded 228.3 MT of freight under its jurisdiction in the 2024-25 financial year, registering an increase of 2.6 per cent compared to the 2023- 24 fiscal. As of March 21 in the 2023-24 fiscal year, ECoR had unloaded 222.4 MT of freight within its jurisdiction. The three railway divisions of ECoR played a crucial role in attaining the feat. Major freight contributor includes the coalfields of Mahanadi Coalfi elds Limited (MCL) at Talcher, five key ports under ECoR’s jurisdiction— Paradeep, Dhamara, Visakhapatnam, Gangavaram, and Gopalpur, iron ore mines in Keonjhar and Bailadila (Chhattisgarh) and major steel and aluminium industries. “Today, ECoR has established itself as the first railway zone to achieve 250 MT of freight loading for two consecutive years.
Despite various operational challenges, this record-breaking achievement was made possible through meticulous planning, seamless coordination with government sectors, industries, and stakeholders, and an unwavering commitment to efficiency,” said ECoR general manager Parmeshwar Funkwal. The dedicated workforce, with its positive attitude and relentless efforts, has played a key role in maintaining this momentum of success, he added. “This phenomenal performance further cements ECoR’s position as a frontrunner in freight transportation, significantly contributing to the nation’s economic growth and logistics efficiency, Funkwal said.
