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Concor in the south central region is in an expansion mode mainly to boost the exim traffic. While the phase II of MMLP in Vizag is already operational, a third railway line is planned at Sanathnagar and land acquisition is in progress in Nagulapally, all of this is to accommodate the growth in cargo movement.
Q How was the business performance in the past year?
The south central region recorded in the first two months of the financial year 45 per cent growth, which has come more from the domestic operations as compared to the exim. Exim has recorded 30 per cent growth whereas domestic cargo movement has recorded 70 per cent growth. But we are very optimistic about the growth prospects for exim business because this segment has posted impressive growth in the Secunderabad area, while the Hyderabad area has posted 15 per cent growth in the first two months of this financial year. In Visakhapatnam we have already developed the phase II of MMLP in February this year and this MMLP has Concor in the south central region is in an expansion mode mainly to boost the exim traffic. While the phase II of MMLP in Vizag is already operational, a third railway line is planned at Sanathnagar and land acquisition is in progress in Nagulapally, all of this is to accommodate the growth in cargo movement by Omer Ahmed Siddiqui all the facilities to support the exim movement, including stuffing and de-stuffing. We expect the exim cargo movement to grow by 70-80 per cent with the addition of this MMLP. Since it has commenced operations just few months back the trade will need some time to adjust to this new shift in logistics operations. In September or October the business season will start after the monsoon. The last six months of the financial year are very crucial for any industry and logistics is no exception.
Q Which are the major commodities you are targeting?
In the Secunderabad area it is pharma, manufactured goods, polished granite and cerials. In the Visakhapatnam area it is rice coming from Chhattisgarh and marine products, which is a major commodity in Visakhapatnam area.
Q Tell us about your Telangana operations?
In the Telangana area, the Sanathnagar ICD has shown very good improvement in the first two months of this financial year and we expect the trend to continue. We are adding additional features to the Sanathnagar ICD. Currently we are dealing with movement of exim cargo with only two railway lines, but shortly the third line will also get operational in this financial year and with that three rakes can be loaded as compared to the current capacity wherein only two rakes can be loaded. Currently the utilisation of the existing two lines is more than 100 per cent and so we find it difficult to handle cargo movement in the peak season. We have already got the necessary sanctions and permissions, and the work is in progress for the third line.
With the third line our operational costs will also come down as the rakes that were not coming to Sanathnagar directly will also start coming. Today the rakes are stationed at Zaheerabad, Bidar and Khanapur area which is hardly 120km away. They are coming to secunderabad area but not reaching Sanathnagar. Thus the third line will also help in attracting more cargo and converting the existing market into rail mode as well.
Q Expansion plans of Concor in Telangana region?
We are in touch with the Telangana government. At the outer ring road we are having 17 acres of land where we are operating domestic containers for Nagulapally, but the land is not sufficient to cater to the exim traffic. So, 65 acres of land will be added to Nagulapally for developing additional lines and that will give a boost to the exim traffic. The expansion will be complete by next financial year and traffic from here can be dispersed to Karimnagar, Nizambad or Khammam.
Q Do you plan to run double stacked containers?
Double stacking is not feasible in this part of the country because of the presence of overheard lines (OHL) in the network. Double stacking is permitted in a dedicated line where there is no OHL. However, the railways have the opinion that if we go for the miniature of containers where the height of the containers can be reduced then double stacked containers can be carried under the wire. This is still in conceptual stage, but if it becomes successful it can be used for some major depots like Sanathnagar.
Q Do you see any impact of DPD on your operations?
Most of the containers coming into Mumbai are consumed in and around Mumbai, upto Surat in North and upto Goa area. In this part of the country the local customs are interested and are evaluating different feasible methods for implementing DPD. Under DPD the cargo is cleared at the port itself and is delivered here. We have all the capacity and technical knowledge of different systems – DTMS and DTMI. DPD containers will need to be captured in DTMS and a separate area in the ICD will be allotted to them. If the Customs are interested in implementing DPD at Sanathnagar we are ready to bring the containers.
Q Your plans to divert road traffic to rail?
Concor being a government entity all our rates are very transparent. Majority of the cargo moving from Telangana area is being handled by us. But still certain amount of cargo is going by road due to several reasons, be it pricing. But all this will change once GST is introduced. If proper invoicing of cargo is done, then compared to the rates offered by truck operators, our rates are much cheaper. Today truck operators may do the invoicing in a different way to make their rates appear cheaper, but actually it is not so. Whatever cargo you are carrying if proper billing is done then definitely rail mode will appear cheaper.
We are doing a lot of road shows and we have extended rail service upto thimmapur, which is a private terminal. We plan to have 100 terminals by 2020 so that if more terminals are available traders will not have to travel long distances. Today traders from Khammam are coming here, but if a terminal is available to them they need not travel long distances and this can be done by Concor only.
Q Tell us about the last mile connectivity offered by Concor?
We have introduced last mile connectivity for defence, ammonium nitrate and food grains. We are offering a composite rate that includes first mile and last mile road connectivity. We have already moved the cargo and services are running on the basis of composite rate. We pickup from their premises and deliver at the destination. This involves using road and rail services combined. We have plans to extend the service to other commodities as well.
Q How is the response to timetabled freight trains?
For time-tabled freight trains service, at Nagulapally we have recorded 28 per cent growth in the first two months of this financial year, basically moving cargo from Delhi to Sanathnagar. Concor has developed a mobile app available both on Android and IOS for tracking the status of cargo. It will also let you know the freight from point A to B. Based on the feedback of the customers we are continuously improving it.
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