Indian Railways Initiates “Hydrogen for Heritage” Project

December 4, 2023

GS Paper III Infrastructure

Context: The Ministry of Railway is inviting expressions of interest from global players to manufacture hydrogen-powered trains in the country based on indigenously developed technology.

Indian Railways Unveils Hydrogen-Powered Train Prototype

Indian Railways is developing a prototype of a train that will be powered by hydrogen fuel cells, making for a more environmentally friendly locomotive than traditional diesel-powered ones.
Currently, only Germany commercially operates hydrogen-powered trains, while the US, the UK, France, and Japan are in the testing phase.

What is the Hydrogen for Heritage Project?

Announcement in Union Budget: The Finance Minister in her Budget speech in February 2023 announced the ‘Hydrogen for Heritage’ scheme, a plan to operate hydrogen-powered trains on select heritage and hilly routes that are environmentally sensitive.
Proposed Plan: India’s plan to develop the technology involves the retrofitment of hydrogen fuel cells on diesel electric multiple unit (DEMU) rakes. This prototype is expected to run on the Jind-Sonipat section in Haryana initially.
Indian Railways has proposed to run 35 hydrogen trains at an estimated cost of Rs 80 crore per train, with ground infrastructure costing Rs70 crore per route.
Manufacturing cost: one rake of six coaches with hydrogen propulsion is estimated at Rs 80 crore; for ground infrastructure, it is Rs 600 crore.
Thirty-five train-set rakes (with six coaches each) have been sanctioned for the ongoing financial year for eight sections–Matheran Hill Railway, Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, Kalka-Shimla Railway, Kangra Valley, Bilmora Waghai, Patalpani Kalakund, Nilgiri Mountain Railways, and Marwar-Goram Ghat.
Challenges: According to, the Ministry of Railways the initial running cost of hydrogen-powered trains would be higher, but it would subsequently reduce with an increase in the number of such trains.

About Hydrogen Fuel Cell:

It is an electrochemical cell that converts the chemical energy of hydrogen into electricity.
It consists of a positive anode and a negative cathode and uses electrolysis to generate electricity.
The fuel cell’s core is made of solid or liquid electrolytes to aid the process.

What are the Hydrogen-Powered Trains?

Hydrogen trains basically run on hydrogen fuel cells. These fuel cells combine oxygen and hydrogen to create electricity, which drives the train’s motors.
Environmental Benefits: Hydrogen trains are more environmentally beneficial than traditional diesel trains as they do not emit dangerous pollutants like nitrogen oxides, carbon dioxide, and particulate.

Also Read: National Hydrogen Energy Mission (NHEM)

Source: Live Mint