Every time I travel by the trains, I complain. I complain about the lack of cleanliness, about the quality of food; I complain about the pungent odor emanating from the lavatory, or about the crowd. Finally I resign to hoping for a better Railway Budget. But ever since I have taken a keen interest in following the same, I have always been disappointed. This is because the UPA government's inaction never delivered anything substantial.
Today, when I woke up, I had hope and fear in my heart. Hope that the recently elected NDA government would give us a major positive change in the railways, and fear that it would be like the past budgets, dull and hopeless. When I turned on the television, I was greeted with the usual sight of Railway Minister, Mr. D.V. Sadananda Gowda, unable to deliver his budget speech due to frequent interruptions by other party members. Mr.Gowda would smile whenever he was about to introduce a new train or a major reform, as if to silence his opponents.
Today, when I woke up, I had hope and fear in my heart. Hope that the recently elected NDA government would give us a major positive change in the railways, and fear that it would be like the past budgets, dull and hopeless. When I turned on the television, I was greeted with the usual sight of Railway Minister, Mr. D.V. Sadananda Gowda, unable to deliver his budget speech due to frequent interruptions by other party members. Mr.Gowda would smile whenever he was about to introduce a new train or a major reform, as if to silence his opponents.
The key reforms were:
•Introduction of Jan Sadharan Express, Premium A/C trains and DEMU (Diesel Electronic Multiple Units) and MEMU (Mainline Electronic Multiple Units) trains.
• A diamond quadrilateral of metro cities was announced. These metros are to be connected by high speed trains. The speed of trains in some sectors (like Goa-Mumbai) is to be speeded up from 160km/h to 200km/h.
• A1 and A grade railway stations are to have wifi connectivity.
• India’s long unfulfilled aspiration of running a bullet train is much nearer to reality than ever before. This bullet train will run from Mumbai to Ahmedabad. The Japanese and French commissions appointed have already completed their feasibility studies.
•The government is planning to introduce workstations on trains so that the commuters can work while travelling.
•The Mumbai suburban railway network is going to get 864 EMU coaches within the next two years.
•Trains to the ‘Char Dham’ temples are planned with special trains for pilgrim circuits.
•The Railways aspire to have paperless offices within five years.The ticketing system is to be automated to a much greater extent.
•The quality of food of the trains has always been a matter of grave concern and there are some attempts made to address these concerns. Feedback for the food can be lodged through an IVR system. Food on trains can now be ordered via SMS and vendors who serve food of poor quality will have their services discontinued.
Mr. Gowda accurately noted that the funds for the revamp of railways cannot be collected solely by burdening the public with fare hikes. It is of paramount importance that the Railways incorporate PPP (Public Private Partnership) models, FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) in their working. Despite protests against FDI, I believe that the opening of the economy is beneficial for the sector. We have witnessed this in 1991, when the opening up of our economy propelled us on to the global stage.
After Mr. Gowda finished his Budget speech, the session was adjourned for 2pm. I switched off the television set and begun my thought process. Yes, the budget brought in a plethora of changes; yes, it took many steps in the forward direction. But will we have a bullet train network as vast and efficient as China? Maybe in the future but not anytime soon.
Was this budget better than those of the past years? Definitely. Was it up to my expectations? Nearly.
-RSV
•Introduction of Jan Sadharan Express, Premium A/C trains and DEMU (Diesel Electronic Multiple Units) and MEMU (Mainline Electronic Multiple Units) trains.
• A diamond quadrilateral of metro cities was announced. These metros are to be connected by high speed trains. The speed of trains in some sectors (like Goa-Mumbai) is to be speeded up from 160km/h to 200km/h.
• A1 and A grade railway stations are to have wifi connectivity.
• India’s long unfulfilled aspiration of running a bullet train is much nearer to reality than ever before. This bullet train will run from Mumbai to Ahmedabad. The Japanese and French commissions appointed have already completed their feasibility studies.
•The government is planning to introduce workstations on trains so that the commuters can work while travelling.
•The Mumbai suburban railway network is going to get 864 EMU coaches within the next two years.
•Trains to the ‘Char Dham’ temples are planned with special trains for pilgrim circuits.
•The Railways aspire to have paperless offices within five years.The ticketing system is to be automated to a much greater extent.
•The quality of food of the trains has always been a matter of grave concern and there are some attempts made to address these concerns. Feedback for the food can be lodged through an IVR system. Food on trains can now be ordered via SMS and vendors who serve food of poor quality will have their services discontinued.
Mr. Gowda accurately noted that the funds for the revamp of railways cannot be collected solely by burdening the public with fare hikes. It is of paramount importance that the Railways incorporate PPP (Public Private Partnership) models, FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) in their working. Despite protests against FDI, I believe that the opening of the economy is beneficial for the sector. We have witnessed this in 1991, when the opening up of our economy propelled us on to the global stage.
After Mr. Gowda finished his Budget speech, the session was adjourned for 2pm. I switched off the television set and begun my thought process. Yes, the budget brought in a plethora of changes; yes, it took many steps in the forward direction. But will we have a bullet train network as vast and efficient as China? Maybe in the future but not anytime soon.
Was this budget better than those of the past years? Definitely. Was it up to my expectations? Nearly.
-RSV