Delhi government has planned to transport vegetables by the horticulture train, which is run by the Central government instead of trucks to keep a check on the rising vegetable prices. The horticulture train is run jointly by the Container Corporation Limited (Concor) and National Horticulture Board (NHB). It carries vegetables and fruits to different parts of the country.
Usually, vegetables are brought in the city through trucks. Not only is the process time consuming but it is quite costly as well. By transporting vegetables through trains, the stock can be increased and the prices will automatically fall.
However, the project has many restrictions since the Delhi government will need the wholesalers to help in transporting vegetables from the station to wholesale markets. They will also need to check what type of vegetables they will be able to bring through these trains. Furthermore, the government will need to mobilize the wholesalers and ask them to use the service.
The train carries all types of fruits and vegetables throughout the year, regardless of the season. The fruits and veggies are carried in special containers for proper ventilation for a better shelf life. The train consists of 90 ventilated containers where each container can hold 16 tonnes of vegetables. The train for carrying bananas was started from Jalgaon district to Delhi. The train carrying onions started from Nashik district to Kolkata. A major concern is onion and the Delhi government is checking with authorities in the Nashik district to transport onions to New Delhi through the horticulture train.
