Maruti inaugurates India's largest automobile in-plant railway siding at Manesar facility

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Haryana Chief Minister inaugurate railway siding at Maruti's Manesar plant.

Maruti Suzuki India today announced the inauguration of the country's largest automobile in-plant railway siding at its Manesar facility. It is the carmaker's second in-plant terminal, after the Gujarat facility.

The Manesar railway siding, registered under the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, has been developed as part of the 126 km Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor (HORC), running from Sonipat to Palwal. The project has been executed by a joint venture company, Haryana Orbital Rail Corporation Ltd (HORCL).

Under the joint venture, Maruti has committed to invest Rs 325 crore in developing HORC. Additionally, the carmaker has invested about Rs 127 crore towards internal yard development. Overall, the Brezza-maker's total investment is about Rs 452 crore.

"We are very happy that India's largest automobile in-plant railway siding is inaugurated today at Maruti's Manesar facility. We are deeply grateful to the visionary leadership of the Union Minister for Railways and the Government of India's focused implementation of seamless multi-modal connectivity promoting green logistics," said Hisashi Takeuchi, MD and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India.

"Aligned to the PM's GatiShakti National Master Plan, the company's second in-plant railway siding facility signifies a landmark achievement in its green logistics journey. We are also highly thankful to the Government of Haryana and the Chief Minister for their timely support and guidance on this project," he added.

Takeuchi said that the project underscores Maruti's strong commitment to India's 2070 net-zero emissions target. "It will contribute to avoiding 175,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions, saving 60 million litres of fuel annually at full capacity, and reducing road congestion. Lowering carbon emissions remains a top priority at Maruti, and we aim to achieve this by increasing the share of vehicle dispatches through railways to 35% by FY31," he added.

Spread over 46 acres inside the Manesar facility, the railway siding features a fully electrified corridor having four full-length tracks for rakes and one track for engine escape, totalling 8.2 km of track length. The siding also includes a two-floor station building and a dedicated pathway for guards and drivers along the tracks.

Models manufactured at Maruti's Gurugram and Manesar facilities will be dispatched to 17 hubs from this railway siding, serving 380 cities across India. Port locations of Mundra and Pipavav, used by the company for exports, will also be served. The railway siding will have a dispatch capability of 450,000 vehicles at full capacity.

Maruti claimed that it has dispatched 2.5 million vehicles cumulatively through railways since FY15.