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Election gimmick, says Mamata

Special Correspondent

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress chief and the former Railway Minister, Mamata Banerjee, on Friday described the interim Rail Budget proposals as “an election gimmick” and “visionless.”

Referring to those proposals specific to West Bengal, Ms. Banerjee said: “It is Lalu’s eyewash to satisfy the Communist Party of India (Marxist). What the CPI(M) has been doing for the past 32 years in the State, he [Lalu Prasad] has done now.”

The proposed reduction in fares in non-suburban express and ordinary passenger trains by Re. 1 “is a farce,” she said.

“Because it is election year, three new trains have been proposed for West Bengal. This is an eyewash,” Ms. Banerjee said.

She said the State had remained deprived since the time she was the Railway Minister during which, she claimed, she had introduced a number of trains in West Bengal.

As for the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor and the proposal to examine the feasibility of introducing a bullet train between Howrah and Haldia, she said: “There is nothing new in these. Those were my proposals,” she added.

“There should not be any temporary approach and the new government after the Lok Sabha polls should work with a long-term vision.”

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