Click to play videoNew Delhi: Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday presented a Budget which has a range of schemes for passengers and left ticket prices and freight charges untouched. Banerjee announced that Railways will not be guided by economic viability, but by social commitment.
"I am also aware the economic recession has caused much economic burden on the poor section of the society also," she said, presenting its budget for 2009/10. "That's why I do not propose any increase in the passenger fares."
"Similarly I do not intend to increase the freight rates."
"People all over the country have high expectations from the Railway Budget," Banerjee told the Lok Sabha switching between English and Hindi.
HIGHLIGHTS OF SPEECH
- Twelve non-stop, point-to-point trains between select cities to be introduced. The sections include: Howrah-Mumbai, Delhi-Lucknow, Delhi-Chennai, Delhi-Pune, Delhi-Allahabad, Howrah-Delhi, Sealdah-Delhi and Ernakulum-Delhi.
- 50 railway stations, including CST Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Howrah, Sealdah, will be developed to have world-class facilties
- 309 out of 375 stations will be developed with modern facilities
- 50 stations at tourist, religious places to have integrated facilities
- Tatkal scheme for booking tickets to be reduced from five days to two days
- 200 automatic vending machines at key stations for selling tickets
- 50 mobile rail ticket vans to be introduced
- ATMs on 200 mid and small sized stations
- Passengers can now buy tickets at 5,000 post offices
- Ladies' specials to be introduced in suburban trains during peak hours
- Railways will not be guided by economic viability, but by social commitment
- New factory in West Bengal for making 500 state-of-the-art coaches annually
- Committee under Sam Pitroda to commercialise railways' optic fibre network
- Railways to develop cold storages for farmers to store vegetables and fruits.
- Scheme named Izzjat for low income monthly travel till 100 kilometres.
- Superfast parcel express trains to be started on a pilot
basis between Delhi and Chennai and Delhi and Mumbai.
- Priority areas to be railway catering, punctuality, food, sanity of rail bogeys.
- Banerjee says an expert committee will be set up to advise her on implementation of the so-called economically unviable but socially desired projects.
- Railways to extend helping hand to physically challenged and elderly people by providing ramps, specially designed bogeys
- Committed for the downtrodden & development of the country
- Infotainment facilities on Rajdhani Express trains for long-distance passengers
- One doctor to be posted on long distance trains, says Banerjee.
- Railways to extend helping hand to physically challenged and elderly people by providing ramps, specially designed bogeys
- Expert committee to be established to look into economic viability of socially important projects
- Railways to develop multi-functional complexes with shopping malls, food stalls, medicines and variety stores in different parts of the country
- Infotainment services to be provided in major long-distance trains
- SMS updates on wait-listed tickets to be introduced
- High-capacity, AC double-decker trains to be introduced on select inter-city routes
- Integrated security scheme rolled out for 140 vulnerable stations
Rs.1,102 crore allocated towards improving passenger amenities
Rs 500-crore increase in budgetary support in 2009-10
New "Yuva" fully air-conditioned train for youth
Yuva fares Rs.299 up to a distance of 1,500 km and Rs.399 up to 2,500 km
Banerjee began presenting her ministry's budget for the current fiscal shortly after noon on Friday with the promise of addressing the concerns of average passengers.
"People all over the country have high expectations from the railway budget," Banerjee told the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament, switching between English and Hindi.
She started with a question if Indian Railways, which runs the world's second largest railroad network under single management, should function purely on the basis of economic viability or address the social commitment.
"Time has come when our economic and social philosophers have to change their old mindset of economic viability and replace it with social viability and upliftment," she said.
Banerjee said her focus would be on better passenger amenities, good food at affordable prices, clean toilets at stations and trains.
"Fifty stations will be developed into world class facilities," she said naming those at Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Varanasi Guwahati, Chennai, Mangalore, Porbundar and Kochi, among others.
This is her first rail budget for the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government and third in her political career.
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