The offer for the production and maintenance of 9,000 horsepower (HP) of electric locomotives in Gujarat was carried out in a transparent way, the spokesman of Indian railways said on Monday, June 23, 2025). | Photo Credit: Neither
The offer for the production and maintenance of 9,000 horsepower (HP) of electric locomotives in Gujarat was carried out in a transparent way, the spokesman of Indian railways said on Monday, June 23, 2025).
Indian railways, which fall under the Ministry of Railways, responded to the accusation of the Congress Party in a process by which the Indian railway was awarded by a contract of 26,000 crore for the production of 9,000 HP locomotives. Congress at a press conference on Monday (June 23, 2025) questioned transparency in the awarding of Siemens and called for a parliamentary investigation of this matter.
“Recent statements Siemens clearly indicate that only the final assembly, testing and commissioning is carried out at the Dahoda factory,” said former Brijendra Singh deputy at a press conference.
“The rest of the critical components, including motor systems and energy converters, are produced in Siemens in Nash, Aurangabad and Mumbai. This is contrary to the original government’s claim that the gauge will turn into a full -fledged manufacturing point,” Singh said.
The Ministry of Railways did not publish the details of competing applicants, nor did it publish any comparative evaluation, Congress further claimed.
“The public has no way of knowing whether companies like Alstom or Bombardier have received a fair opportunity or not. In fact, Alstom has already shown that they are delivering 12,000 hp locomotives and have a history of technology sharing,” Mr. Singh said.
“The offer for production and maintenance of 9,000 hp electric locomotives has been made in a transparent way. There are two manufacturers of electric locomotives around the world who have the ability to design and produce 9,000 hp of electric locomotives – Alstom and Siemens – both participated in the tender.”
The offer was evaluated by a team of technical and financial experts in accordance with processes that have always followed by Indian railways, the spokesman added. “In the technical evaluation, both Alstom and Siemens were equally located. In the financial offer, the applicant with the lowest price was awarded a contract,” the spokesman said.
Railways spokesman, who refuted the accusation of the congress, said about 89% of the components used in the current production process of the locomotive in Dahoda were performed in India.
“The ecosystem of rail components in India is growing rapidly. The locomotive is a very complex machine and its components are equally complex. They are manufactured at different places in India and supplied to various locomotive manufacturers. Very few countries in the world can claim the level of production components that can be produced in the last ten.
Congress also described the question of the conflict of interest. “What sounds more about the fact that the current Minister of Railways of the Ashwini Vaishnaw has previously worked as Vice President Siemens India and was employed in Siemens and GE … This raises a direct question of conflict of interest, especially because Siemens secured his biggest contract in India …” Mr. Singh said. “
However, the railway spokesman denied a conflict of interest. “The whole selection process has been carried out by teams of officers who are technically and financially competent in dealing with these matters under the rules. There is no question of conflict of interest, because this process was followed by rules and procedures that have always followed Indian railways,” the spokesman said.
“There was no involvement of the Minister of Railways in the process of evaluation. In addition, the Siemens and Alstom have been working with Indian railways for many decades,” the spokesman said.
Published – 23 June 2025 20:30
