Guwahati: The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has become the first railway zone in India to adopt compostable bioplastics on its trains, marking a significant step toward sustainable transportation.
As a pilot initiative, NFR introduced biodegradable bags for distributing bedrolls to passengers on August 15, aligning the rollout with the celebration of India’s 79th Independence Day. The packaging material, fully compliant with ISO 17088 standards, was developed at the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT-G) under the guidance of Professor Vimal Katiyar.
Supervised by NFR General Manager Chetan Kumar Shrivastava, the project initially covers 25 trains originating from terminals in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bengal, Bihar, Tripura, and West Bengal. Around 40,000 bags are being distributed as part of the pilot run.
According to NFR spokesperson Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, the initiative reflects the zone’s larger mission of adopting green practices across its operations. “From rapid railway electrification and solar energy generation to AI-based elephant intrusion detection systems, bio-toilets, rainwater harvesting, and afforestation projects — sustainability remains at the core of our strategy,” he said.
A key feature of this effort is the inoculum generation plant at Kamakhya station near Guwahati, which helps recycle biodegradable waste. This facility allows used bedroll bags to be reprocessed into new ones, further reducing plastic pollution.
Officials emphasised that the collaboration with IIT-G not only enhances passenger convenience but also demonstrates a scalable and environmentally responsible model for greener railway operations in India.