Indian Railways imported 11 high speed passenger Locomotives from ABB Transportation Systems Ltd. Switzerland under a contract in July 1993 which included Transfer of Technology to permit Indian Railways to indigenously manufacture two types of locomotives WAG 9 and WAP 5 . This was a new technology with regenerative braking system , microprocessor controls and sophisticated design requiring less maintenance contributing to more revenue and high speed. The maximum potential speed is 240 Kmph and could be controlled through modification of gear ratio and changes in the software. CLW successfully absorbed this new technology as usual and produced its first WAP 5 class locomotive christened " NAVODIT" on 17th. May 2000.

Indian Railways had been planning to enhance the present maximum speed of 140 Kmph to 160 Kmph in select high speed corridors such as all Rajdhani and Shatabdi routes. This essentially needed three aspect to take care. The Track, the Locomotive and the Coach / wagon. The freight service was excluded from the purview of running at 160 Kmph since this required enormous fund for its vast population as well as diverse and non-dedicated routes to materialise. Therefore it was felt necessary to upgrade the locomotive and the coaches at the first instance.

Instead of importing the rolling stock outright, it was decided to procure high quality , state-of-the-art sophisticated modern Rolling stock from foreign manufacturers with condition to transfer of technology so that IR can build their own requirement in future. As a result high speed LBH coaches from Germany and WAP5 class engines from Switzerland were procured through contracts. The aspect of track is being taken care of and till such time these will run at a speed of 140 Kmph as per Indian Standard. A part of these having been received are under trial till end of November 2000.

It was of utmost importance for a passenger loco to reduce the mass. particularly the unsprung mass. The car body is made of 2.5 mm fluted design to reduce weight. But as the 2.5 mm fluted section is not easily available in India , the alternative material available of thickness 4 mm was used The unsprung mass on the axle is achieved by using fully suspended motors. The drive from the motor pinion to axle gear is achieved through a flexible coupling. Axle box and gear case are of aluminium for weight reduction. It uses disc brakes , a new system to Indian Railways. Most of the mechanical and pneumatic components were developed indigenously in CLW. Staff were to undergo rigorous training to absorb the new technology.

Type of service	Passenger	Length of Cab	2434 mm
Supply System	25KV. AC, 50Hz	Overall width of body	3142 mm
Class	WAP-5	Panto locked down height	4237 mm
Track gauge	1676 mm	Traction Motor Type	FXA 7059, 3-phase Squirrel cage Induction coil
Axle arrangement	Bo-Bo	Traction Motor mounting	Fully Suspended
Brake system	Air, Regenerative and parking	Gear Ratio	3.92 (67:35:17)
Total Weight	78 tonnes	Cont. Power at Wheel Rim	4000 kW (5450 H.P.)
Axle Load	19.5 t	Starting tractive effort	258KN
Unsprung mass per axle	2.691 t	Cont. tractive effort	220 KN
Wheel Diameter	1092mm(New) 1016 mm (fully worn)	Maximum regenerative braking effort	160 KN
Length over buffers	18162 mm	Maximum service speed	160 kmph
Length over Head Stocks	19280 mm	Control system voltage	110 V
Bogie CRS	10200 mm	Drive system	3 Phase Drive with GTO Thyristor & microprocessor based VVVF control
Loco wheel base	13000 mm	Multiple Unit operation	Max 2 locos
Bogie wheel base	2800 mm	Hauling Capacity	26 Coaches at 140 kmph on level