Business
Historic Green Milestone: Indian Railways Achieve 99.2% Electrification, Leaves UK, Russia And China Far Behind
New Delhi: Indian Railways has reached a milestone in its journey toward sustainable transportation, achieving electrification of 99.2 per cent of its broad gauge network. This puts India ahead of major rail economies such as the United Kingdom, which stands at 39%, Russia at 52% and China at 82%, according to a press release from the Ministry of Railways.
The achievement brings the country closer than ever to operating a fully electrified railway system. Fourteen railway zones, including Central, Eastern and Northern Railways, have already achieved 100% electrification. In addition, 25 states and union territories have completed electrification across their rail networks.
Data provided in a written reply to the Lok Sabha highlights the rapid pace of this transformation. Between 2014 and 2025, India electrified 46,900 route kilometres, more than double the 21,801 route kilometres completed in the previous six decades.
In the past two years alone, 7,188 route kilometres were electrified in 2023-24 and 2,701 route kilometres in 2024-25.
The environmental benefits of this transition are major. Rail transport emits 89% less CO2 than road transport, and Indian Railways is complementing electrification with renewable energy initiatives. So far, 898 MW of solar power has been commissioned at 2,626 stations, reinforcing India’s commitment to a greener transportation network.
Electrification is advancing consistently across zones. The Central, East Coast, East Central, Eastern, Konkan Railway, Kolkata Metro, North Central Railway, North Eastern Railway, Northern Railway, South Central Railway, South East Central Railway, South Eastern Railway, West Central Railway and Western Railway have achieved full electrification.
Other zones, such as North Western, Southern, Northeast Frontier and South Western Railway, have crossed 95% electrification.
The progress is equally impressive state-wise as well. Most states are fully electrified, while Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are nearing completion. In the North Eastern region, the broad gauge networks in Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura and Mizoram have been 100% electrified, while Assam stands at 92%, with work underway to complete the remaining sections.
All new rail lines and multi-tracking projects are now being sanctioned with electrification integrated from the beginning. According to the Ministry of Railways, the completion timeline for electrification projects depends on factors such as forest clearances, relocation of utilities, statutory approvals, geological and topographical conditions, law and order situations and climatic constraints, which can affect progress at different project sites.
Beyond expanding connectivity, electrification is central to India’s sustainability agenda. The move to electric rail corridors is helping dramatically cut carbon emissions. For instance, transporting 1 tonne of freight over 1 km emits 101 g of CO2 by road, compared with just 11.5 g by rail, an almost eightfold reduction.
The Indian Railways aims for 100% electrification while contributing to the nation’s goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2030. Every new rail project now includes electrification from the outset, ensuring that India’s railway system grows greener, more efficient and globally competitive.
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The BSE Sensex is trading higher by 371 points, or 0.47%, at 81,090.24, while the NSE Nifty rises by 70 points to trade above 24,850 at 24,889.25.
Stock Market Today.
Market Updates Today: A day after the market crash following the Budget’s provision to hike Securities Transaction Tax (STT), the domestic equity market on Monday saw heightened volatility. After opening nearly flat, the NSE Nifty rose to the day’s high, then touched the day’s low before sharply recovering to trade at the day’s high of 25,093.
As of 3:16 pm, the BSE Sensex surged by 932 points, or up 1.13%, to 81,641.87 in the afternoon trade and the NSE Nifty rose by 267 points, or up 1.07%, to trade above 25,000 at 25,093.27. After opening nearly flat, the NSE Nifty rose to the day’s high, then touched the day’s low before sharply recovering to trade at the day’s high of 25,093.27.
Among the 30 Sensex shares, 25 stocks were trading in the green. Among the top gainers were PowerGrid, Adani Ports, BEL, Reliance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, and IndiGo, rising by up to 7.91%. The laggards were Axis Bank, Infosys, Titan, TCS, and Trent, falling by up to 1.97%.
After opening nearly flat, at around 9:30 am, the BSE Sensex jumped by 350 points to 81,112.03 in the opening trade, while the NSE Nifty rose 91 points to trade above the 24,900 level at 24,910.85. However, the benchmarks gave up all gains and declined to day’s low amid heavy volatility.
Aakash Shah, technical research analyst at Choice Equity Broking Private Ltd, said, “Near-term sentiment remains cautious despite some support from domestic technical indicators. The broader market direction will largely be influenced by global equity cues, crude oil price movements, and institutional fund flows.”
On Sunday, the Nifty saw an aggressive sell-off after the Budget 2026 announcement to hike STT, plunging nearly 870 points from 25,440 to an intraday low of 24,571, before staging a partial recovery to close at 24,825.
“A strong bearish candle was formed, with the index closing decisively below the 200-day EMA, indicating a deterioration in trend strength. Immediate resistance is placed at 24,950–25,000, while key support lies in the 24,650-24,700 zone. The RSI slipped to 31, reflecting oversold conditions, while India VIX surged 10.73% to 15.09, highlighting elevated market volatility,” Shah said.
On Sunday, February 1, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 588 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) also remained net sellers, offloading shares worth Rs 682 crore, adding to the pressure on the market.
V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments Ltd, said, “Yesterday’s market selloff resulting in 495 point crash in Nifty was a knee-jerk reaction to the sharp increase in STT on F&O trades. This was not a revenue-raising measure, but a decision to discourage retail traders from complex F&O trading, in which 92% of them were losing money. This decision is in the interest of retail investors. But this decision impacted the market sentiments, which were already impacted by the decision to make no changes in the LTCGs tax, which a section of the market was expecting rather unrealistically.”
It is important to understand that the Budget is a growth-oriented Budget with fiscal prudence. The 10% nominal GDP growth projected in the Budget is achievable and has the potential to deliver around 15% earnings growth in FY27. The market will soon start discounting this positive. But it is possible that FIIs may continue to sell impacting the market. Retail investors should keep their cool and remain invested and continue to invest systematically. A significant upturn in the market may take time; perhaps a retreat from AI trade globally. We don’t know when this will happen. But we know that an earnings rebound is imminent in response to this growth oriented Budget. That is a clear positive, he added.
February 02, 2026, 09:34 IST
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Gold and silver prices have continued to drop sharply in a “brutal” sell-off after hitting record highs in recent weeks.
The precious metals began falling on Friday in response to US President Donald Trump’s nomination for the incoming chairman of the Federal Reserve.
His choice for former Fed governor Kevin Warsh to replace current chairman Jerome Powell when his term ends in May soothed some investor nerves, which boosted the US dollar but saw appetite for safe-haven investments gold and silver slump in response.
Gold and silver suffered their worst trading days for decades on Friday and were down heavily again on Monday, with spot prices off by another 7% and 11% respectively at one stage.
Silver had plunged by nearly 30% on Friday and gold dropped over 9% in its worst one-day drop since 1983.
Gold and silver had been enjoying a record breaking rally as investors sought refuge amid global geopolitical uncertainty, conflict and tariff woes.
Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said: “The sell-off has been far more brutal than I, and many, expected.”
He added: “For silver, the rally on the way up was faster than gold’s, so the correction on the way down is faster too.”
Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, added: “If the sell off continues, then gold and silver are at risk of eroding their losses for the year so far.
“The historic move lower in silver prices has not stemmed a fall at the start of this week.
“Traders have not yet found a level that they are happy to buy the dips, and the timing of Chinese Lunar New Year in mid-February could accelerate the sell off, as Chinese traders reduce risk ahead of the holiday.”
UK and US stock markets are expected to open in the red on Monday, as the gold and silver rout has a knock on effect on mining giants, while Brent oil was also 5% lower.
Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Mining stocks are likely to feel the heat as metal prices scramble to find a floor.
“Oil prices are also trending the wrong way for investors in commodity-focused companies.”
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