Mamata Banerjee presented a populist railway budget for 2010-11 with no hike in passenger fares or freight.
Mamata Banerjee presented a populist railway budget for 2010-11 with no hike in passenger fares or freight. But her virtuoso performance was overshadowed by that of Sachin Tendulkar on the cricket field.
Scattering small bits of good news in all directions and largish bits for her home state of West Bengal, the railway minister did her bit for tackling prices by reducing freight on kerosene and foodgrain by Rs100 per wagon. In keeping with the spirit of social responsibility and commitment to inclusive growth, the minister spared passengers any fare hike — the seventh successive budget to do so.
Announcing a slew of concessions for passengers, Banerjee reduced the service charges for e-booking of tickets for both sleeper and AC classes — by Rs10 and Rs20 respectively. She also proposed free travel for cancer patients going for treatment in three-tier AC and sleeper class and continuance of concessions for students of madrassas and journalists.
Railway ministry officials estimated the financial impact of these concessions at a “few crore rupees”, but did not divulge any specific details.
The minister said 101 new suburban services will be introduced in Mumbai and more services will be launched in Kolkata and Chennai.
Banerjee also announced 54 new train services, extension of 21 routes and some specials like Sanskriti Express to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, Matrabhoomi trains for women, a Bharat Tirth for tourists and 10 more Duronto Expresses, which go non-stop.
To ensure safety and security, the railways are introducing the latest technology to prevent accidents. For instance, automatic fire and smoke detection system will be introduced in 20 long-distance trains. Also, the budget talked of manning all the 17,000 unmanned level crossings (LCs) within five years. Building underpasses is also in the ministry’s plans.
On passenger amenities, the rail budget said that 94 stations would be upgraded as Adarsh Stations, and another 10 have been identified for conversion as world class stations. Drinking water plants are also in the pipeline, apart from a catering policy. Other facilities promised in the budget include SMS updates of reservation status and movement of wagons.
Reflecting the green side of the rail budget, Banerjee announced that 2.6 million CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps) would be distributed to railway employees. Besides, the ministry would introduce 10 rakes with green toilets and set up 10 rail eco parks to conserve, protect and promote the railways’ wet lands and forest areas.
While talking of various PPP (public private partnership) initiatives, Banerjee stressed that “we are not going for privatisation of the railways. It will remain a government organisation.”
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