Ministry of Railways launches innovation policy with $6.4 Mn annual budget
The Ministry of Railways has reportedly unveiled StartUps for Railways, a new Indian Railway Innovation Policy, assigning an annual budget of USD 6.4 million (Rs 50 crore).
This initiative is part of the ministry’s plan to make investments in startups to discover solutions to problems currently faced by the Indian Railways.
Under the new policy, the administration will offer a grant of USD 192,264 (Rs 1.5 crore) to select startups based on equal sharing with the inclusion of milestone-based payments.
Startups will be chosen by the Indian Railways after it floats an online problem statement for developing a prototype.
The national carrier will then examine the prototypes developed by various startups and offer enhanced funding to upscale deployment on the success of the prototype.
Despite the Indian Railways investment, the IPR (intellectual property rights) for innovations will stay with the innovator or startup.
The Indian Railways will also allot more funds for the divisional railway managers to enable them to solve on-field problems using on-field solutions.
The policy intends to collaborate with startups for developing implementable, cost-effective, scalable solutions, and working prototypes for Indian Railways.
Under the policy’s first phase, the Indian Railways has recognized eleven problem statements. This includes a rail stress monitoring system, broken rail detection system, track cleaning machine, and automation of track inspection activities.
Other problems include interoperability with the national ATP system of Indian Railways, headway improvement system for sub-urban sections, development of an online condition monitoring system for three-phase electric locomotive traction motors, and design of a superior em pad (elastomeric pad) for heavy haul freight wagons, among others.
The eleven problem statements have been recognized and uploaded on a separate portal for startups to commence work and build prototypes.
Throughout the developmental journey, RDSO, railways’ field officers, and railway board officers will continue supporting the innovators.
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Pankaj Singh
Pankaj Singh Develops content for Algosonline, Market Size Forecasters, and a couple of other platforms. A Post Graduate in Management by qualification, he worked as an underwriter in the UK insurance domain before deciding to switch his field of profession. With experience in technical and niche w...