Southern Railway’s Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram (ELS/RPM) has proudly clinched the First Prize in the CAB Upgradation Competition, hailed as the ‘Beauty Contest’ for Electric Locomotives of Indian Railways.  The competition was conducted by the Railway Board at the 42nd Electric Loco Maintenance Study Group (MSG) meeting in Banaras Locomotive Works (BLW) on 23rd and 24th May 2025. 16 Zonal Railways and 3 Production Units participated in the prestigious loco competition.

Winners of Loco Beauty Contest

Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram emerged joint winners along with Electric Loco Shed, Lallaguda in South Central Railway.  The award was presented by Shri V.P. Singh, Additional Member (Traction), Railway Board in the presence of Shri V. Venkatasubramanian, Executive Director/Electrical Engineering (Rolling Stock), Railway Board and N. Balaji, Chief Electrical Loco Engineer, Southern Railway and was jointly received by Shri Naga Sreenivasu Rongala, IRSEE, Senior Divisional Electrical Engineer of Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram and Shri R.Santhosh Kumar, Senior Divisional Electrical Engineer of Electric Loco Shed, Lallaguda. 

Electric Loco Shed, Ajni (Central Railway), Electric Loco Shed, Kanpur Shed (North Central Railway) and Electric Loco Shed, Visakhapatnam Shed (East Coast Railway) jointly bagged the second prize in the competition.

Electric Loco Shed, Vadodara Shed (Western Railway), Electric Loco Shed, Hubballi Shed (South Western Railway) and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Shed (East Central Railway) jointly won the third place in the contest.

Major Highlights of the Upgraded CAB – Loco No. 30333 (WAP-7) of Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram, Southern Railway

The award-winning WAP-7 Locomotive No. 30333 of  Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram impressed with its comprehensive upgradation, significantly enhancing crew comfort, safety, functionality, and the overall cab environment. The loco won laurels for its optimum space utilisation in the cab. 

• Redesigned Driver Desk for ease of access and better ergonomics
• Single Lookout Glass for improved visibility
• Ventilated Driver Seat for enhanced crew comfort
• Full ACP Panelling in the cab for better noise and thermal insulation
• Waterless Urinal for crew convenience
• CVVRS System with in-cab display covering 16 cameras
• Driver Fatigue Monitoring System for added safety
• Digital Medical Kit with BP and SPO2 monitoring for crew health
• New Age Livery Painting symbolising next-gen technology and aesthetics

In addition to these, the loco features several other thoughtful upgrades such as a foldable inspecting official's seat, anti-skid flooring, Bosch electrical wiper with auto-refill, AC vent modifications, ambient LED lighting, touchscreen control panel, caution order alert system, electronic signal exchange unit, digital pneumatic gauges, footstep spotlight, a transparent crew toolbox, support handles for LP and ALP, and a spacious cupboard for crew belongings—collectively enhancing the cab’s utility, safety, and visual appeal.

Electric Loco Shed, Royapuram

This premier Electric Loco Shed was opened in the year 2012 to handle 3-phase passenger locomotives.  Currently, the shed holds 130 WAP-7 Class locomotives.  The shed caters to the premier trains such as Rajdhani, Shatabdi, Humsafar trains and several other long distance Mail/Express trains.  Known for its outstanding loco maintenance schedules, the Royapuram shed’s WAP-7 class locomotives are widely used all over India. 

The Electric Loco ‘Beauty Contest’

The competition for Electric locomotives of Indian Railways aims to encourage and celebrate the excellent maintenance and presentation of its prestigious rolling stock, the electric locomotives. The contest typically includes various categories, such as overall appearance, cleanliness, paintwork, and originality.  The locomotives are judged based on their unique features or modifications, overall aesthetic appeal, and maintenance standards.  Winning locomotives are recognized and often showcased in exhibitions and publications. It is noteworthy that Southern Railway’s WAG-9 Locomotive 32993 named after the war veteran, "Major Mariappan Saravanan" from Electric Loco Shed, Arakkonam bagged third place in the ‘Beauty Contest’ for Electric Locos held during the year 2024 at the Patiala Locomotive Works, Punjab.

Southern Railway congratulates the Electric Loco Shed/Royapuram team for this outstanding achievement and for setting a benchmark in Loco CAB upgradation efforts across Indian Railways.

Source/RSB