This involves introduction of timetabled freight container, parcels and special commodity trains on pilot basis, increasing terminal capacity through construction of rail side logistics parks and warehousing, development of three new DFCs, expanding IR’s freight basket and opening up of container sector to all traffic barring few commodities.
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Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan has hailed rail budget 2016-17 presented by Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu in Parliament today.
The often used parameter for measuring a rail management’s competence is operating ratio, which suggests how much of generated revenue is left after spending on day-to-day operations.
Modi has prioritised overhauling India’s dilapidated infrastructure in his first 20 months in power, but his government is expected to focus on more populist spending measures in Monday’s union budget, making fare hikes tough to justify.
The Railway Minister, talking to reporters after the presentation of the Budget, said, ” Interest of the Aam Aadmi has been protected.
The party said the government’s plan to raise Rs 32,000 crore to fulfil obligations of the Seventh Pay Commission through public-private partnership model and by selling assets held by railways make neither economic nor common sense.
It is against this backdrop that doubts arise on the promise of an nearly Rs.21,000-crore hike in the plan size for the railways, that basically covers all the developmental projects, to Rs.1.21 lakh crore for fiscal 2016-17, as also an increase in receipts from both passengers and freight.
NFIR leaders said that the Railway Budget is “totally uninspiring” and on the contrary generating “resentment” among Railway employees as the aim of the Budget is to “aggressively implement privatisation, outsourcing ” of regular Railway activities.
“We have ramped up capital expenditure to remove the huge backlog and provide for future needs…the rate of capital expenditure has increased”, Mr Prabhu said in his speed-read Budget speech. Indian Railways would “collaborate with the best in the world” to modernise its trains and rail infrastructure, he said. He also said that Indian Railways is exploring the feasibility of providing an option to our customers for drinking tea in kulhad.
It added that given the difficulties on the fiscal front, “it is unlikely” that the Railways will receive budgetary support to bridge the revenue gap. Indian Railways to surpass ambitious target of commissioning 2,500 kms of broad gauge lines, nearly 30% higher than a year ago.
Besides, a Railway university will be set up at the Indian Railway Academy at Vadodara, Gujarat. The Tejas category of trains will run at 130 km an hour, with entertainment, local cuisine, Wi-Fi and other amenities on board.
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Does Railway Budget 2016 have new trains? Similarly, the Deen Dayalu scheme (named after the RSS ideologue) will see augmentation of existing trains with two to four general class coaches on popular routes.
