CHENNAI: The Integral Coach Factory (ICF), Chennai, will manufacture 30 mixed Amrit Bharat trains with both AC and non-AC coaches in 2025-26, departing from its earlier practice of producing only non-AC versions.
In his Independence Day address at ICF on Friday, General Manager U Subba Rao said the factory would also produce 21 Amrit Bharat trains this year and 25 in the next financial year, along with nine rakes of the Vande Bharat sleeper trainsets.
The ICF will introduce the Gati Shakti Freight EMU, a semi-high-speed train designed for e-commerce and FMCG logistics, equipped with advanced container handling systems and crew amenities.
Rao said the factory had produced a record 3,007 coaches in the current fiscal year, including 1,168 distributed power rolling stock (DPRS) coaches, which cover Vande Bharat coaches and 23 Vande Bharat Chair Car trainsets, two of them specially designed for the Jammu and Kashmir region.
The first rake of the Namo Bharat Rapid Rail, a 12-car fully air-conditioned trainset, was rolled out in May 2024. The prototype 16-coach Vande Bharat sleeper has completed oscillation trials, with five Amrit Bharat trains being turned out this year to improve travel comfort for the common man. The hydrogen trainset has passed load tests and will be rolled out shortly, he added.