By month's end, the steel producer SAIL intends to begin testing the manufacturing of head-hardened (HH) rails for use in freight corridor and metro rail projects.

According to SAIL Chairman Amarendu Prakash, the steel PSU originally intended to begin the trial production of HH rails in August but postponed it in response to the Indian Railways' need for standard rails of 880 grade.

"We have the technology. We had planned for it (HH rail production) but then...they (Railways) requested us to defer the trials and now it is at the end of October," the Chairman said.

HH rails are special rails used in high-speed freight corridors and metro rail projects. Such rails are manufactured using head hardening technology to bear about 50 per cent higher pressure compared to normal rails.

SAIL has set up facilities for the production of HH rails at the new Universal Rail Mill (URM) at its Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) in Chhattisgarh, and the cold trials for the same have already been completed.