core sector communique

MCC on RAIL BUDGET

Within the limits of a moderate growth prospects of the Indian Economy and the policy stance not to put any burden on ‘Aam Aadmi’, Shri Deepak Jalan, Sr. Vice President of the Chamber has complimented the Railway Minister, Shri Dinesh Trivedi for presenting a pragmatic, safety-oriented and forward-looking budget targeting 725 Km new lines, 700 Km doubling of railway tracks, setting up a factory in West Bengal for manufacture of next-gen propulsion system for electric locomotives etc. The Railway Minister has also introduced a slew of safety measures such as, escorting of 3500 trains by RPF / GRP, setting up a Railway Safety Authority and three ‘safety villages’ at Bangaluru , Kharagpur and Lucknow, elimination of all unmanned level-crossings which account for 40 p.c. of all accidents, apart from creating a Railway Safety Fund of 16,000 crore.

Announcing an investment of 7.35 lac crore for the 12^th FYP as against 1.92 lac crore for the current FYP, Shri Trivedi expects to see all Railway Stations look like Airports, all level crossings manned reducing the incidence of accidents to Zero, the operating ratio to come down to 74 p.c. from 95 p.c. now. The decision to run the trains at 160 Km/hr as the standard speed will reduce travelling time and lead to capacity- expansion which will be further boosted by introduction of new lines, up-gradation of 100 stations on PPP model, modernisation of signaling system etc. But Shri Jalan points out that implementation of the projects need to be monitored closely and efficiently, to reach the targets.