Presenting the first Railway
Budget of the Narendra Modi government, Railway Minister Sadananda Gowda
outlined different measures for improving passenger amenities and also proposed
a roadmap for introduction of bullet trains in the country.
Key Takeaways of Rail
Budget 2014:
1.
Bullet trains: The Railway Minister
proposed introduction of bullet trains between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. He also
proposed setting up of Diamond Quadrilateral Network of high-speed trains
connecting major metros and growth centers. (Read here)
2.
High-speed trains: Railways plans to increase
speed of trains to 160-200 km per hour in nine select sectors: Delhi-Agra,
Delhi-Chandigarh, Nagpur-Bilaspur, Goa-Mumbai, Chennai-Hyderabad, Delhi-Kanpur,
Delhi-Pathankot, Mysore-Bangalore-Chennai, and Nagpur-Secundrabad.
3.
FDI in Railways: To mobilise resources for
infrastructure upgradation and high-speed trains, the minister said it would
seek Cabinet approval for foreign direct investment (FDI) in building rail
infrastructure. He however said FDI would not be allowed in railway operations.
(Read here)
4.
Periodic hike in rail
fares: Though
Mr Gowda did not announce any fare hikes, he said periodic revision in
passenger fare and freight rates will be linked to revisions in fuel prices in
order to insulate the Railway revenues from fuel cost escalation. In his
post-budget briefing, Mr Gowda said the Railways would continue with the Fuel
Adjustment Costs (FAC) formula under which there will be periodic hike in fares
and freight rates once in six months, if there is a hike in fuel cost.
5.
Wi-Fi in select trains and
stations: To
improve passenger convenience, the Railways will provide Wi-Fi services in A1
and A category stations and in select trains. Besides that platform and
unreserved tickets can also be bought through internet.
6.
Improvement in e-ticketing
services: Railway
e-ticketing services will be improved to support 7,200 tickets per minute and
allow 1.2 lakh simultaneous users.
7.
Better cleanliness: To improve cleanliness
measures, the minister provided a 40 per cent higher allocation and proposed
outsourcing of cleanliness services at 50 major stations. He also said onboard
housekeeping would be extended to more trains and CCTVs would be utilized to
monitor stations' cleanliness.
8.
Pre-cooked food: The Railways will
introduce pre-cooked and "ready-to-eat meals of reputed brands" on
trains across the country. In addition to providing filtered (RO) drinking
water on trains and at stations, the minister vowed strict action, including
the cancellation of contracts, for any vendors who are found supplying unhygienic
food to passengers.(Read here)
9.
New trains: Railways proposes to
introduce 58 new trains including five Jansadharan trains, five premium Trains,
six AC express trains, and 27 express trains. (See list of trains)
10.
Dedicated freight corridor
projects: For
eastern (Ludhiana , Punjab, to Dankuni, West Bengal ) and western (Mumbai-Delhi) dedicated freight
corridor projects, the Railways will target awarding of construction contracts
for nearly 1,000 km this year. (With Agency
Inputs)
Source from NDTV
