Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Mediocre Rail Budget

This is the first rail budget introduced in 17 years by the Railway Minister of Congress party Pawan Kumar Bansal. He has trodden the middle line while presenting the Rail Budget for 2013-14. To attract middle class, he has also focused his budget on technology by introducing the provision of e-ticketing through mobile phones. In general the railway minister may not have hiked the passenger fare but he has imposed supplementary charges on Super fast train tickets on the line of former railway minister Dinesh Trivedi by levying fuel surcharge. Railways have hiked freight rates for moving diesel and cooking fuels by almost 8 per cent, a move that may result in marginal hike in retail fuel prices. Only by arranging revenue through back door, the immediate requirement of ensuring safety, security and cleanliness in trains and at stations can not be achieved. To provide full proof security to passengers during the journey, the railway minister is required to show will power to do the job with top priority. All the weakening rail bridges and unmanned crossings need to be taken into serious consideration during 2013-2014. The increased rates will have cascading effect on the price of commodities of daily use. Every one knows that for the development of railways and better safety, security, cleanliness and comfortability of the passengers, revenue is required immediately. But it does not mean that revenue for the purpose should be raised by burdening the rail passengers. The general public is already burdened with sky-rocketing prices of all commodities and any increase will certainly be pinching. No doubt, railway is the vastest network covering the entire nation. Railway is also the cheapest form of conveyance and mode of transportation for the general public. Largest distance is covered only by railway. So, it is the first choice of every Indian. Being a Congress party minister, he should have shown all India outlooks and taken enormous attention in introducing the new trains and establishing rail industry in equal proportion in every corner of the nation. It is not proper that Railway Minister should see only Rae Bareli -the parliamentary constituency of his party president Sonia Gandhi- to be fittest place for setting up rail factory. Indian railway must not be seen with partisan attitude. As far as the introduction of new trains and setting up of rail factories are concerned, the railway minister must see every corner of the nation with the same spectacles.

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