OREANDA-NEWS. Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu today launched Indian Railway Knowledge Portal namely www.kportal.indianrailways.gov.in which has aggregated most of the available knowledge about Indian Railways at one location and has also tried to encompass as much knowledge as possible, by linking websites, documents etc. for dissemination of knowledge on Indian Railways.  This portal is an initiative of the National Academy of Indian Railways (NAIR), Vadodara. This portal is an aggregation of information, with links to resources of the Indian Railways, for the purpose of dissemination of knowledge, innovations and best practices. This initiative is in line with the “Digital India” campaign of the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.  It is also in line with the thinking of Railway Minister Shri Suresh Prabhu that the training and learning environment of Indian Railways be upgraded for the benefit of Railway personnel.

The Portal was launched through video-conferencing established between Ministry of Railways, Rail Bhawan and NAIR Headquarters at Vadodara.  Chairman, Railway Board Shri A.K. Mital, and DG, NAIR Shri S. Mookerjee  also spoke on the occasion from Vadodara end.  Railway Board Members were among those present at the New Delhi end whereas GM, Western Railways Shri G. C. Agrawal was present at Vadodara end.

Speaking on the occasion Minister of Railways Shri Suresh Prabhu said that the Indian Railways has taken a big initiative in starting railway knowledge portal. He said that globally it is accepted that we live in a knowledge economy which is driven by knowledge. No sector today can be away from the knowledge resources. He said that Knowledge, Innovation and Research play a very important role in any organization; the spread of knowledge must be such that whole society contributes towards the development of nation. The Railway Minister pointed out that it is desirable that the knowledge about Railway systems does not remain confined to a few select, but all the enthusiasts, researchers, academicians and our own railway personnel contribute ideas, solutions, and schemes.  The Minister said that we need to share best practices and innovations.  This portal will be a comprehensive holistic platform as a one stop arrangement for everyone interested in Indian Railways in particular and Railways in General. He complemented NAIR for this initiative.

This Knowledge Portal features  all subjects of Indian Railways, Railway Research and Development, use of ICT in Indian Railways, listing of major  International Railway Journals, linking of existing Indian Railway Libraries and also World Railways in one web page.  It has e-access to existing libraries of Railways, and all the libraries are being clustered to have a single interface through e-Granthalaya by NIC. The Knowledge Portal Home Page also gives a brief of all the social media activities of the Indian Railway sites.  It has web pages on fan clubs, heritage, and rail museums across the world.  In short, it is a ‘one stop’ arrangement for people who are interested in Indian Railways both from a strictly technical point of view as well as enthusiasts.  It is envisaged that it  shall be a virtual learning point where people will be able to login to the website and go for off-line or online learning. There are lots of researchers in the country who are working on railway related topics and some of them are not fully updated of the technological developments taking place in the Railways.  This website will be therefore herald an interactive platformwith the training and academic experts  across the country so that research scholars can have free access and get themselves introduced to the specialists in Railways who can help them in furthering their research on railway related topics.  The website has a modern design, with a very clean and simple layout.  It is mobile and tablet friendly and is easily navigable.It has been an in house effort of IT Faculty of the Academy with bare minimum cost for website development, about Rs 70,000. It is an attempt to harmonize the efforts of enthusiasts involved in furthering the research on railways and generating innovative ideas for improving the Railways from within and outside. 

The National Academy of Indian Railways (NAIR) is the alma mater for the Officers of the Indian Railways. It is situated in Vadodara. It provides training to all levels of Indian Railway officers, from probationers to General Managers.