Railways see strong rebound, not full recovery

India’s railways carried 7.4 billion passengers in FY25, up from just 1.3 billion during the pandemic low in FY21, but still below the 8.4 billion mark hit in FY19.

While traffic has steadily recovered, it hasn’t fully caught up with pre-COVID demand.

Changing travel habits, faster adoption of road and air, and urban migration patterns may be reshaping how India moves.

The good news? Growth is consistent year-on-year, with FY25 clocking the strongest recovery since the slump.

But Indian Railways still has some distance to cover before it returns to full throttle.