Railway
Budget – 2014: Key Points
Bullet trains: The Railway Minister proposed
introduction of bullet trains between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. He also proposed
setting up of Diamond Quadrilateral Network of high-speed trains connecting
major metros and growth centers.
High-speed trains: Railways
plans to increase speed of trains to 160-200 km per hour in nine select
sectors: Delhi-Agra, Delhi-Chandigarh, Nagpur-Bilaspur, Goa-Mumbai,
Chennai-Hyderabad, Delhi-Kanpur, Delhi-Pathankot, Mysore-Bangalore-Chennai, and
Nagpur-Secundrabad.
FDI in Railways: To mobilise resources for
infrastructure upgradation and high-speed trains, the minister said it would
seek Cabinet approval for foreign direct investment (FDI) in building rail
infrastructure. He however said FDI would not be allowed in railway operations.
Periodic hike in rail fares: Though Mr Gowda did not announce any
fare hikes, he said periodic revision in passenger fare and freight rates will
be linked to revisions in fuel prices in order to insulate the Railway revenues
from fuel cost escalation. In his post-budget briefing, Mr Gowda said the
Railways would continue with the Fuel Adjustment Costs (FAC) formula under
which there will be periodic hike in fares and freight rates once in six
months, if there is a hike in fuel cost.
Wi-Fi in select trains and stations: To
improve passenger convenience, the Railways will provide Wi-Fi services in A1
and A category stations and in select trains. Besides that platform and
unreserved tickets can also be bought through internet.
Improvement in e-ticketing services: Railway e-ticketing services will be
improved to support 7,200 tickets per minute and allow 1.2 lakh simultaneous
users.
Better cleanliness: To improve cleanliness measures, the
minister provided a 40 per cent higher allocation and proposed outsourcing of
cleanliness services at 50 major stations. He also said onboard housekeeping
would be extended to more trains and CCTVs would be utilized to monitor
stations' cleanliness.
Pre-cooked food: The Railways will introduce pre-cooked
and "ready-to-eat meals of reputed brands" on trains across the
country. In addition to providing filtered (RO) drinking water on trains and at
stations, the minister vowed strict action, including the cancellation of
contracts, for any vendors who are found supplying unhygienic food to
passengers.
New trains: Railways proposes to introduce 58 new
trains including five Jansadharan trains, five premium Trains, six AC express
trains, and 27 express trains. (See list of
trains)
Dedicated freight corridor projects: For eastern (Ludhiana, Punjab, to
Dankuni, West Bengal) and western (Mumbai-Delhi) dedicated freight corridor
projects, the Railways will target awarding of construction contracts for
nearly 1,000 km this year.
If you want more information
regarding investment or you have any other query about investment feel free to
ask us.
Warm regards,
Arvind Trivedi
Certified
Financial Planner
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