New Delhi: Indian Railways’ push to electrify its network has reduced its diesel consumption by 185 crore liters annually, equivalent to about four days of India’s total diesel demand. With electrification of the railways’ broad-gauge network reaching 99.6%, the volume of diesel usage has fallen by about 37% compared to 2016-17, officials said.“As against 293 crore liters of diesel consumption in 2015-16 – the first year after electrification was taken up in mission mode – the consumption is 108 crore liters in 2024-25. This has further reduced. Electrification of the railway network has saved us from the fuel issue that the entire world is grappling with,” an official said. He said that more attention has also been given to obtaining power from renewable sources for railway operations.The official said electrification has saved foreign exchange for the exchequer, which would otherwise have been required to import fuel.Official data shows that only 21,801 route km of Indian Railways were electrified as of 2014, in the last 12 years, another 48,072 km have been electrified.Logistics sector insiders said that if the Railways had not accelerated the electrification of its network, train operations for both passengers and freight would have been adversely impacted in a post-West Asia conflict scenario. A railway official said, “Line haulage costs, for both passengers and freight, using electric traction are much lower than diesel – about one-sixth in the case of passenger movement and about one-third in the case of freight movement.”The current focus on obtaining electricity from renewable sources will make railways an even cleaner mode of transport.