The newly manufactured high horsepower diesel locomotives at the Tiruchi shed on Thursday. | Photo Credit: A_MURALITHARAN more-in With the newly manufactured high horsepower diesel locomotives allotted to the Tiruchi Diesel Loco Shed being put into operation in various railway sections, the Railway Board, New Delhi, has allotted 11 more EMD locos to the Tiruchi shed. With this allotment, the tally of such locos has increased to 56. The Tiruchi shed is the lone establishment in the Southern Railway zone to house the highest fleet of EMD locos - each of which can chug at a maximum speed of 160 km an hour. The shed had been housing 45 EMD locos equipped with microprocessor control system until recently. Railway sources told The Hindu that six new EMD locos manufactured at the Diesel Locomotive Works in Varanasi have been put into regular operation. Five more high horsepower locomotives have left for Tiruchi from Varanasi and are expected to be inducted soon, said a senior official. All the 11 new locos have dual cabins and are equipped with air-conditioned units for loco pilots. Two locos would be used for hauling freight wagons and nine for hauling mail and express trains in various sections. The EMD locos with 4,500 horsepower are longer in length when compared to conventional ‘Alco’ type locomotives which happen to be the main stay of the Indian Railways. Each EMD loco weighs about 126 tonnes and has a 5,000 litre capacity fuel tank. Being high horsepower, the EMD locos can run up to a maximum speed of 160 km an hour. The EMD locos are housed at Tiruchi and Erode sheds. The locomotives come to the shed for “scheduled attention” at regular intervals before being sent back for operation. The Tiruchi shed also houses a fleet of 57 ‘Álco’ type diesel locomotives and 35 Diesel Power Cars. The EMD locos maintained by the Tiruchi shed are in operation in Mangalore, Mysore, Baroda and at Konkan Railway, said the sources. The Tiruchi shed was recently adjudged the best maintained shed among the four sheds in the Southern Railway zone in 2016-17 fiscal. This is the third time in a row that the Tiruchi shed has got this recognition.

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