Once a small town known for its agriculture and fishing and of course the power looms, Bhiwandi in Thane district adjoining Mumbai is turning into one of the biggest and busiest parcel terminals of India.
The Bhiwandi Road railway station on Mumbai Division lies on the Vasai-Diva-Panvel route that connects Central Railway and Western Railway. Located within the Mumbai metropolitan region (MMR), many ecommerce companies like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, and FedEx have their warehouses here.
When the Covid-19 pandemic was sweeping the state and lockdown/unlock measures were in force, the Central Railway (CR) commissioned a parcel terminal and goods shed on September 9. It has gained a much-needed momentum.
On Tuesday, Bhiwandi MP Kapil Patil and CR’s Divisional Railway Manager Shalabh Goel, who heads the Mumbai Division, visited and inspected the facilities. Patil urged all loaders to send their goods through the railway in a cost-effective environment-friendly manner.
Goel said the parcel trains are time-tabled hence come with assured transit time. “Sending the parcel by railway takes less time compared to other modes of transport,” he said. He pointed out that Mumbai-Chennai takes only 28 hours, Mumbai-Shalimar (Kolkata) 36 hours and Mumbai -Azara (Assam) takes 50 hours. The tariff offered for parcel loaders is much less compared to road transport.
“Bhiwandi is a strategic location as the warehouses are located in close vicinity of the station and hence the first mile charges are reduced to an extent. Export for Bangladesh can also go directly as railways are already sending automobiles from Kalamboli to Bangladesh,” CR officials said.
It is the connecting point of the North-South railway traffic and also connects the JNPT port with Railways. Bhiwandi is an industrial town and a textile and warehousing hub.
Bhiwandi Road station has multiple advantages like proximity to Mumbai and Thane City, adequate parking space for trucks and tempos.
Source: https://www.deccanherald.com/national/west/bhiwandi-turning-into-biggest-parcel-terminal-in-india-922369.html