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Saturday, Jul 04, 2009
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Mamata spares passengers

K. Balchand

Freight too untouched, Izzat pass for unorganised sector, 57 new trains

Photo: Shanker Chakravarty

SECOND presentation: Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee, along with Ministers of State for Railways, K.H. Muniyappa (behind her) and E. Ahamed (left), arrives at the Parliament House to present the Railway budget on Friday. She presented it first in 2000. —

NEW DELHI: Better amenities, concessions for the masses and students and a record number of new trains, including low-cost trains for the youth, have been balanced with a slew of commercially viable projects by Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee in the first Railway budget of the new UPA government.

It is for the first time in six years that passenger and freight charges have been left untouched.

Ms. Banerjee took the opportunity to outline the Railway’s road map by setting up a series of committees to prepare the blue print for the path ahead and held back announcement of new projects for want of clearance from the Planning Commission. These would be announced in due course of time.

Ms. Banerjee proposes to initiate a record 57 new train services, extend the services of 27 other trains and increase the frequency of 13 others. This includes a dozen trains, which would run without any halt from point to point under the nomenclature “Duronto (superfast) trains,” the low-cost air-conditioned trains with seating arrangements dedicated to the young generation and the low-income group and women-only EMU trains to be introduced in Delhi, Chennai, and Kolkata suburban during rush hour.

She also proposed to introduce air-conditioned double-decker coaches for inter-city passengers.

Ms. Banerjee announced a new scheme for labourers earning less than Rs.1,500 a month allowing them to travel up to 100 km to their place of livelihood at a concessional monthly season ticket (MST) of Rs. 25 per month under the scheme “Izzat,” which she said was to accord dignity to workers of the unorganised sector.

The budget proposes to extend the existing MST for students to those studying in madrasas, higher and senior madrasas. The MST available to students in Kolkata will be applicable in Metro Rail Kolkata also.

She announced the revision of the Tatkal Scheme under which the period of booking the ticket has been reduced from five days to two days. The minimum charge would be Rs. 100 instead of Rs.150 and the fare would be charged for the destination instead of the entire route of the train as of now.

Infrastructure

On the other hand, she intends to set up 50 multi-functional complexes at railway stations serving pilgrimage, tourist and industry centres, encourage private ownership of special purpose rolling stock for commodities and private operation of freight terminals, introduce premium service for container movement with assured transit time, super fast premium parcel service on pilot basis on three routes, set up mega logistics hubs alongside Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors, and setting up of cold storage chain for the benefit of farmers and the rural economy.

She announced setting up of an Eastern Industrial Corridor, a new factory at Kanchrapara-Halisahar, which would produce 500 EMU and MEMU and Metro coaches annually, a 1,000-MW power plant at Adra, besides developing 50 stations as world class stations, 375 stations as ideal stations and set up automated laundries at metropolitan cities, takeover of units of Burn Standard and Braithwaite.

She has promised to introduce onboard housekeeping scheme, introduce toilet facilities in DEMU and MEMU trains with journey time of more than two hours, install automated vending machines at 200 large and medium-sized stations and sell tickets through post offices and mobile vans.

The Railway Minister declared a surplus of Rs.17,400 crore in 2008-09 and a payment of dividend of Rs. 4,717 crore to the government, leaving the Railways with an investible surplus of Rs. 12,681 crore.

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