A Rs 307 crore Vande Bharat maintenance hub is being developed at Sabarmati in Ahmedabad, allowing Western Railway to carry out scheduled overhauls and major repairs of 24-coach trainsets locally instead of sending them to other locations.
The facility is part of Phase II of the Sabarmati Integrated Coaching Depot and is being developed by Western Railway’s Ahmedabad division. It will bring heavy repairs, wheel maintenance and the overhauling of key mechanical and electrical systems together at one location.
The heavy repair shed is nearing completion and will have two maintenance lines. One line will be used to lift coaches and remove bogies, while the other will support repairs to interiors, passenger amenities, braking systems and electrical equipment. The project plan also includes a dedicated wheel care shed, where machinery will be used for wheel and axle maintenance.
Construction of the wheel care shed has been completed, while the electrical substation building is ready and has been handed over. Four stabling lines, with a combined track length of 2,547 metres, have also been completed as part of the depot expansion.
The hub will be equipped to overhaul major train components, including traction motors, transformers and other electrical equipment. This would allow a wider range of maintenance work to be undertaken within the Ahmedabad railway division, rather than requiring trainsets to move elsewhere for scheduled work.
According to the project plan, the facility will be able to complete SS-I maintenance of one 24-coach Vande Bharat trainset in about 30 days. SS-II maintenance is expected to take 45 days. Based on those timelines, the planned annual capacity is approximately 12 trainsets for SS-I maintenance or eight trainsets for SS-II maintenance.
The project comes as Vande Bharat operations expand and creates dedicated infrastructure for the trains at one of Western Railway’s key locations. Once operational, the Sabarmati hub is expected to support scheduled overhauls and major repairs within Ahmedabad, with the remaining work focused on completing and commissioning the planned maintenance facilities.
