Central Railway to increase frequency of Kisan Rails

On Sunday, August 23, the Central Railway announced that the frequency of the Kisan Rail will be increased from weekly to bi-weekly.

In the past, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced this initiative in her speech about budget earlier this year envisaging setting up of a 'Kisan Rail' through the public-private-partnership (PPP) model for a cold supply chain to transport perishable goods.

This initiative aims to double the income of the farmers by the year 2022 as it ideally caters to the requirements of small farmers and traders for carrying their perishable supplies to distant places.

On August 21, the Kisan Rain from Devlali to Muzaffarpur carried 235 tonnes of goods from Maharashtra which included products such as pomegranates, lemon, cauliflower, fish, mixed vegetables, chilli’s, capsicum, ginger, garlic and eggs.

This has enabled farmers across Maharashtra to increase their income, especially during the testing times of the pandemic.

PM Modi, earlier while inaugurating the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund had informed the farmers of the country about the special train called Kisan Rail that has been initiated for the benefit of the farmers. This train is to be fully air-conditioned and will act like a cold-storage that will be used to transport produce across the country while minimizing wastage. The Kisan Rail is a part of PM Modi's 'Atmanirbhar Krishi' initiative.