Water is precious. The entire world is facing acute water crisis. The crisis is more evident in the case of drinking water. The scarcity of drinking water is very often being witnessed across the population. Govt of India is implementing various schemes to provide drinking water to all. Various Ministries are working towards this goal.
Ministry of Railways is also not lagging behind. Lakhs of passengers travel daily by trains through the length & breadth of the country all round the year. Railways provides water as a passenger amenity in all coaches. Watering of coaches is regularly done at nominated railway stations so that passengers do not have to face water crisis while making train journey. But, watering of trains also takes a lot of time. Under conventional system, a train of 24 coaches normally takes about 20 minutes to fill water. To reduce the train watering time, a new system called “Quick Watering System” has been installed at nominated watering stations over N. F. Railway.
By using quick watering system, a 24 coach train can be filled up within 5 – 6 minutes. Moreover, multiple trains can be watered at the same time. Presently, this system has been made operational in stations like Guwahati, Lumding, New Jalpaiguri Jn, Alipurduar Jn, New Coochbehar, New Bongaigaon Jn and Badarpur Jn. In stations like Katihar Jn, Mariani Jn and Rangapara North the system is expected to be installed within next few months.
This system is app-based remote controlled. In this system, wastage by Spillage of water can be eliminated. Water is supplied through a six inch pipe with high horse power motors to the train coaches through a SCADA system. There are 1 set of 3 centrifugal pumps. The capacity of each pump is 200 cu.m/hr. The motor is 40 HP, 415 V AC which runs at 1450 rpm. The SCADA system automatically controls the water flow. It also has the facility of monitoring through SMS. The valves can also be operated remotely. The SCADA system helps to record water consumption and also helps to identify any unauthorized use of hydrants or leakages.
By implementing this system, N. F. Railway has ensured provision of fresh water to all its passengers and also reduce wastage & misuse of water at all these stations.
