Jaipur, Sept. 9 -- The Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) has emerged a key catalyst for industrial growth, faster logistics and improved passenger train operations in the state, a senior official said on Tuesday. North Western Railway's chief public relations officer Amit Sudarshan said the 567-km Rewari-Palanpur section of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC) passing through Rajasthan was the longest stretch of a freight corridor passing through any single state and provided faster, safer, more reliable and high-capacity rail connectivity to several industrial clusters. He said the corridor was helping industrial centres in and around Jaipur, Ajmer, Pali and Jodhpur, besides supporting manufacturing, textiles, ceramics and marble sectors. The DFC was also helping strengthen Rajasthan's connectivity with major industrial and commercial centres as well as ports, said Sudarshan. The development of Gati Shakti Cargo Terminals, logistics parks and multimodal transport facilities at various locations is further strengthening the integration between railways, road transport and other modes of freight movement, he said. The operation of freight trains on electric traction is another major advantage of the DFC. Greater reliance on electric rail transport helps save fuel and reduce carbon emissions, supporting more environment-friendly freight operations. For Rajasthan, where major industrial and mining-based sectors depend heavily on the movement of raw materials and finished products over long distances, improved rail-based logistics could provide both economic and environmental benefits, said the CPRO. The 1,506-km Western DFC runs from New Dadri in Uttar Pradesh to New JNPT in Maharashtra, while the 1,337-km Eastern DFC connects New Sahnewal in Punjab with New Sonnagar in Bihar. Sudarshan said that together, the corridors are strengthening rail connectivity between major manufacturing, industrial and logistics centres and key ports....