Freight corridors and new lines
DFCCIL Utility Survey for Freight Corridor Projects
New tracks beside old ones meet cables, pipes and drains that crossed railway land decades ago. We map them before the earthwork reaches them.
Quick AnswerA DFCCIL utility survey scans the land for a new freight track, road over bridge or yard extension. It records every buried cable, pipe and drain that crosses it. The same approach serves RVNL doubling, new line and station works. Contractors use the drawings to plan diversion before piling and earthwork. Projects on fresh alignments are handled by our utility survey for new railway line team.
What does a DFCCIL utility survey involve?
A DFCCIL utility survey is a ground scan of the strip where a dedicated freight corridor track, bridge or station will be built. It finds pipelines, power and telecom cables, drains and the railway's own signalling cables on or across that strip. Their position and depth let diversion be planned in good time. The work is a ground penetrating radar survey run along the formation. Every crossing pipe or cable beneath the ground shows as an arc on the radargram.
The Ministry of Railways created Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited in 2006 to build and operate freight-only lines. Its Eastern corridor runs from the Ludhiana area in Punjab to Sonnagar in Bihar, and its Western corridor from Dadri near Delhi to the Jawaharlal Nehru Port near Mumbai. Rail Vikas Nigam Limited, set up in 2003 and granted Navratna status in 2023, carries out doubling, new lines, gauge conversion, electrification and bridge work for the railways. Both kinds of project dig into ground that other agencies have used for years.
Where do the clashes come from?
Mostly from services that once crossed railway land at a convenient point and were never recorded on railway plans. Over the decades, water boards, power utilities, telecom operators and pipeline companies have crossed tracks with permission, but those records do not always reach the plans a new contractor receives. When a new track is laid alongside, each crossing has to be found and extended or diverted.
- Water pipes and sewers crossing under the existing line near towns.
- HT and LT power cables to villages and level crossing gates.
- Optic fibre along the railway boundary and across it.
- Gas and petroleum pipelines in shared corridors.
- Railway signalling and telecom cables in the cess of the existing line.
- Field irrigation pipes and drains at the edge of acquired land.
Fibre is common enough that its owners are among the first contacted; there is more on telecom operator projects and their routes on our sector page.
Parallel alignment or detour: how does the survey change?
Parallel sections are about the narrow strip next to the existing line; detours are about crossings of roads and services in open country. Much of the freight corridor runs alongside existing tracks, with detours around crowded towns. In parallel sections, we scan the strip between the old and new track centres and the new embankment's footprint, paying close attention to cables in the existing cess. In detour sections, the alignment crosses farmland, roads, canals and village pipe networks, and we concentrate on those crossings.
The same applies to RVNL doubling: the new line sits beside the old, and the existing cess is the most crowded ground on the job.
Electrification work brings a different, smaller task: overhead equipment masts need foundations at regular spacing along the track, each one a short excavation beside the line. Each mast location can be checked with a quick scan before the auger or pit goes down. That costs far less than repairing a signalling cable cut at a foundation. On long sections we scan the mast positions in batches, a few kilometres at a time, ahead of the foundation gang.
DFCCIL and RVNL utility survey at a glance
| Work type | What we scan | Typical finds |
|---|---|---|
| Parallel new track | Strip beside existing line, embankment footprint | S&T cables, power cables, pipe crossings |
| Detour alignment | Road, canal and village crossings | Water pipes, irrigation lines, fibre |
| ROB / RUB | Pier, abutment and approach footprints | Road-verge cables, water mains, drains |
| Yard or station extension | Grid over new platforms and lines | Yard cables, drains, old foundations |
| Output | Chainage-wise drawings, crossing list, KMZ, radargrams | |
Telling other asset owners before digging is part of safe practice; for how the national alert system works, read a plain-language explainer on Call Before u Dig.
Why do ROB and RUB sites need special care?
Because they sit where a busy road meets the railway, and both carry services. ROBs and RUBs take the place of level crossings. Their piers, abutments and approach ramps stand on ground that holds the road's utilities as well as the railway's. The approaches often run for a few hundred metres on each side, through market frontages and junctions.
We scan each pier and abutment footprint as a grid, then run lines along both approaches. At the level crossing itself, gate cables, signal cables and road drains converge in a small area. If a diverted utility has to pass under the track by drilling, an L-section along the bore gives the designer its depth profile.
How do we report on railway projects?
By project chainage and by railway kilometre, so both the contractor and the railway staff can read the drawing. Each crossing on our list carries its chainage, the side of the track, its offset from the existing track centre, its type and estimated depth. Drawings are split by section, between stations, and the radargrams from data collection are filed by chainage for checking.
The scan method for the many fibre and cable crossings is the same as on telecom routes; see OFC route GPR survey for scan spacing and outputs. Crews stay inside the railway's site rules and off the running track, under a safety system certified to ISO 45001.
What does a railway utility survey cost?
₹24 per metre for standard scanning, ₹32 per metre for L-section, GST extra. Minimum order: ₹50,000 in Delhi NCR, ₹1,00,000 elsewhere. Whole orders above 100 km get 25% off, above 500 km 40%, and above 1,000 km 50%.
- A 35 km doubling section, standard scan: 35,000 × ₹24 = ₹8,40,000 plus GST.
- A single ROB near Dadri needing 900 m of L-section and grid lines: ₹28,800 at the rate, so the ₹50,000 Delhi NCR minimum applies.
- A 600 km corridor package earns the 40% slab: ₹14.40 per metre, ₹86,40,000 plus GST.
Full GPR survey rates details are on our price list.
Who are we working for?
DFCCIL and RVNL themselves, plus the civil and track contractors, bridge contractors and consultants on freight corridor and railway packages. Both organisations have handed Mezux Touch survey work under their own orders. Company names on this page are used only to describe the type of work; all trademarks belong to their owners. Share the section, chainage and planned start, then book a survey slot.
Frequently asked questions
Can you scan close to a running line?
Yes, within the railway's site rules and supervision, staying clear of the track. We never scan on the running track itself.
Do you scan the existing cess?
Yes, where the new works will disturb it. That is where railway signalling and telecom cables run on most sections.
Can you plan a bore under the track for a diverted pipe?
We supply the L-section along the bore line; HDD route survey at a glance explains how the profile is set.
How do you handle long packages?
Section by section, reporting each chainage block as it is finished so diversion can start early. The blocks join into underground utility mapping of the whole package.
Will the scan find old foundations in a yard?
In most soil conditions, yes. Old footings, platforms and buried masonry show clearly as a buried object and are marked on the yard drawing.
Get a written quote for your rail package
Rail and corridor pages
Written by Saniya Parveen · Technically reviewed by Rahul Rai · Updated 8 November 2026