Indian Railways Sourcing Week Kicks Off

The 5th edition of three-day Indian Railways Sourcing Week kicked off on 7 May, 2025 with wide participation from industry leaders, senior Indian Railways officials and MSMEs.

Organised by EEPC India with support from the Ministry of Railways and the Department of Commerce, Government of India, the event focusses on key areas such as procurement from MSME units, vendor registration process and initiatives for procurement from MSMEs centralized digital procurement.

In his inaugural address, Mr Pankaj Chadha, Chairman, EEPC India noted the importance of Indian Railways and its role in the development of MSMEs and manufacturing sector. He listed out sourcing opportunities in various railway segments like coaches, locomotives, wheels and equipment manufacturing and railway infrastructure.

Mr Chadha said that modernisation of Indian Railways has been happening at a rapid pace and massive investments are going into renewing assets and building world-class rail infrastructure.

He highlighted achievements and milestones of Indian Railways including record production of locomotives, coaches and wagons in 2024-25.

"In the last financial year India has emerged as a global leader in railway locomotive manufacturing, achieving a record production of 1,681 locomotives, this milestone surpasses the total locomotive production of regions such as the United States, Europe, South America, Africa, and Australia. Further, Indian Railways achieved a historic milestone in wagon production, with a total of 41,929 units and record 9% growth in coach production of 7,134 coaches," he said.

Mr. Adhip Mitra, Executive Director & Secretary, EEPC India said that the proposed expansion of high-speed bullet trains, regional rapid transit systems, and metro networks over the next five years will generate significant demand for high-tech solutions.

"This, in turn, makes platforms like ‘India Railway Sourcing Week’ crucial for vendor development and industry collaborations," he noted.

Mr Mitra thanked all the delegates and hoped that the Railways Sourcing Week would result in higher participation of engineering MSMEs in the railway supply chain.