The Indian Railways is planning to redesign the three-tier non-AC Sleeper Class and unreserved General Class coaches as AC (air-conditioned) coaches. According to a report in the Indian Express, the upgraded Sleeper Class coach will be an “economical” AC 3-tier Class in between what is now the AC 3-tier Class and non-AC Sleeper Class.
The report quoted sources as saying that the Rail Coach Factory in Kapurthala has been entrusted with the job of making the prototype of the upgraded Sleeper Class coach, which will have 83 berths instead of the current 72. Internally, the upgraded coach is being termed as AC 3-tier Tourist Class.
In the first phase, about 230 such coaches are being manufactured. Each coach is estimated to cost about Rs 2.8 crore to Rs 3 crore, which is about 10% more than the manufacturing cost of the current AC 3-tier Class coach. However, with more berths and expected demand, the new “economical” AC 3-tier Class is estimated to bring in more earnings.
The unreserved General Class coaches are also set to get an upgrade as a 100-seater AC Class. While the design for this is being finalised, officials working on the project said the initial design had provision for 105 seats per coach.
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