Are tweets stronger than words? Piyush Goyal enthusiatically tweets post #RailBudget

Minister for Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal posted a series of tweets after the Railway Budget was announced. 

He began by congratulating the Railway minister for presenting a 'path-breaking' budget

Congratulations to Shri Sadananda Gowda ji (@DVSBJP) for presenting a path-breaking railway budget today

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

He followed this by breathlessly tweeting about the new facilities the government would provide for the people. But he first started by taking a jibe at Congress

Let us look at what we inherited from the UPA – in 10 years, they CLEARED 99 new line projects, yet ONLY ONE is complete!!

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

4 projects, as old as 30 years, are still not complete; one project in West Bengal, initiated in 1975-76 is incomplete!!

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

There are 359 incomplete projects, which will require approx. Rs. 182,000 crore of incremental financial outlay

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Our railways are unique: Despite being a monopoly (in a country of 125cr ppl) &receiving 100% advance payment, it's still starved for funds!

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

In the name of social concern, non-remunerative & populist policies were undertaken by UPA: neither social obligations met nor rev. targets

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Railway Minister has displayed enormous courage of conviction and this budget is a testimony to his innovative thinking.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

And got back to heaping praises on the railway minister Sadanand Gowda

Railway Minister has displayed enormous courage of conviction and this budget is a testimony to his innovative thinking.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

He then started tweeting about ambitious plans along the lines of the Railway Budget

We propose to become the largest freight carrier in the world!

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Instead of populist announcements of new projects, which will take years and years to complete, we would rather set things in order first.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

And work to expeditiously to complete stalled projects to make them operational and serve the common man ASAP.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Bullet trains, which will entail an investment of ~Rs. 60,000 crore, will be funded via innovative financial models

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Govt. will use investible surplus funds of railway PSUs in railway infra projects and attract funding from both domestic & foreign investors

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Govt. will use investible surplus funds of railway PSUs in railway infra projects and attract funding from both domestic & foreign investors

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

We will encourage public private participation for future projects

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

We will encourage public private participation for future projects

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

New investments will be used for creating infrastructure in national interest for public good and enhancing quality of services.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

These will also generate lakhs of jobs, and dramatically improve lives of our countrymen

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

These will also generate lakhs of jobs, and dramatically improve lives of our countrymen

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

He enthusiastically explained the Railway Budget

Sadananda Gowda ji’s budget goes into enormous detail, to explain how operational efficiencies will be achieved:

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

The key aspects are – Better prioritizing and setting timelines for completion of ongoing projects and transparency in procurements

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

In addition, adopting safety standards matching international practices and ensuring security for women passengers is a priority

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Many new amenities are being provided for passengers too, including foot over-bridges, escalators and lifts in all major stations

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

All railway stations will have sufficient water supply, platform shelters and decent toilets

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Battery operated carts will ferry differently-abled and senior citizens, just like we see in our airports today

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Battery operated carts will ferry differently-abled and senior citizens, just like we see in our airports today

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Workstations will be offered in trains, to help business travellers spend their travel-time productively

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

A perceptible improvement in catering services (+ IVR led feedback collection system) and food-courts are envisaged

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

And Mahatma Gandhi was remembered,

Inspired by Gandhiji’s ideal of “swachchata” (cleanliness), we shall significantly increase the budget for railway-cleanliness

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Online ticketing, a common pain-point, is also being addressed: Now 7,200 tickets can be booked per minute (instead of ~2,000 currently)!

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

Once again, my heartiest compliments to Shri Sadananda Gowda ji for the railway budget.

— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) July 8, 2014

He finally ended the barrage of tweets by congratulating Sadananda Gowda

Also read: 7 Must Reads on #RailBudget