South Western Railway Holds Freight Customer Meet at Rail Soudha

South Western Railway (SWR) conducted its first Freight Customers' Meet for the financial year 2025-26 at Rail Soudha, Hubballi. The meeting was chaired by Shri Mukul Saran Mathur, General Manager, South Western Railway. It brought together key freight customers from various industries to discuss opportunities, challenges, and growth in rail-based logistics.

During the interaction, the General Manager reaffirmed SWR’s commitment to fostering market-friendly relations and assured all stakeholders that operational bottlenecks in freight loading are being actively addressed. He appreciated the customers' contributions to the zone’s freight performance and highlighted the importance of continued collaboration for mutual growth.

The meeting witnessed productive discussions on improving loading planning, extending operational support, and overcoming constraints, particularly in light of state-imposed restrictions on iron ore loading between 6 PM to 6 AM. Despite such challenges, SWR has achieved a commendable freight performance in the first quarter of the fiscal year. The zone has loaded an average of 44 rakes per day till June 2025. Notably, major freight partner JSW Steel recorded a significant increase in freight movement, with an average of 241 rakes and a total freight volume of 0.96 million tonnes in the first quarter, as compared to 160 rakes and 0.64 million tonnes in the same period last fiscal.

The meeting was attended by prominent customers including Sushil Noval, Vice President of JSW Steel Ltd; K.P. Singh, General Manager of NMDC; Randev General Manager of Praveen Chandra, Group; Nagendra Prasad, Head of Marketing from TVS Motor Company; and representatives from Toyota Kirloskar, Nestlé and other key players across sectors such as steel, iron ore, automobile, cement, fertilizer, container, sugar, rice, and petroleum products.

From the railway side, the session was attended by Additional General Manager Shri K.S. Jain along with Principal Heads of Departments including Shri Prashant Kumar, Principal Chief Operations Manager (PCOM), and Shri S.P. Shastri, Principal Chief Commercial Manager (PCCM).

Customers appreciated the efficiency of SWR’s support, especially in handling steel and iron ore loading operations. The General Manager concluded the meeting by stating that SWR will continue to organize such customer interaction meets regularly and strive towards improving service standards, strengthening partnerships, and contributing to the overall growth of rail logistics.