1.
Madam Speaker, I rise to present before this august House the Revised Estimates
for 2013-14 and the Estimated Receipts and Expenditure for 2014-15.
2. The Estimates
for 2014-15 are for the whole year, but, at present I seek from the august
House a ‘vote-on-account’, sufficient to cover the estimated expenditure for
the first four months of the fiscal. The Hon’ble Members are aware that
requirements for the remaining part of the year would be voted later,
separately.
3. This is my
maiden Budget under the inspiring guidance of the Hon’ble Prime Minister and
Chairperson UPA, to whom I am grateful for the responsibility entrusted to me.
I also wish to profusely thank the Finance Minister for his continued support
and encouragement to the Railways, underlined further by his recent gesture of
providing additional budgetary support for meeting pressing requirements of a
few national projects during the current fiscal.
4. Madam Speaker,
the name of Indian Railways evokes fond childhood memories amongst all of us
who have grown with this beautiful system. Railways influence all aspects of
our lives and untiringly carry people and materials to every nook and corner of
the country. Its role in national integration by providing low cost
connectivity from Kashmir to Kanyakumari on one hand and Arunachal, Mizoram and
Tripura to Gujarat on the other, is unparalleled.
5. As an
organization, Railwaymen take pride in serving the nation, braving snow,
torrential rains, floods and desert storms on the one hand and misdirected
public or terrorist wrath on the other. Madam, I have hardly spent eight months
with Railways but I confess that I have an inner feeling of a lifelong
association. It is my firm view that this pan Indian organization needs careful
nurturing to help it better serve the people and play its role in building the
nation.
6. During my short
stewardship of the Indian Railways, I have been flooded with requests for new
projects of New Lines, Gauge Conversion, Doubling and new Factories, new
trains, and suggestions for improving the services of the system. While
Railways continue to deliver services ungrudgingly in spite of constraints of
resources, both physical and financial, it is high time that we take a serious
note of its urgent investment and other needs. Railways are a strong engine of
development and help mainstreaming our citizens in less developed areas of the
country. Therefore, it is critical for the Railways itself to be restored to a
more central place in the national planning.
7. As the UPA II
Government completes its five years journey in May this year, it is time to
take stock of Indian Railways’ achievements and also lay the road map for the
organization. I would like to share some of the key recent initiatives, which
have led to build up of confidence of our countrymen and instilled a sense of
pride amongst a committed railway workforce of about 14 lakh persons: i.
National Project of Kashmir witnessed a major landmark last June, when 11.2 km
long tunnel linking Banihal with Qazigund in the valley became operational. The
tunnel, which is an engineering marvel, has reduced the distance from 35 km to
17.5 km., provides an all-season means of transport for the local population
and is proving a boon for the inhabitants.
Also, construction
on Udhampur – Katra section, which will enable lakhs of pilgrims from all over
the country to reach foothills to Vaishno Devi shrine directly, has been
completed and trial runs have started. We expect to run passenger services up
to Katra very shortly; ii. During the XI Plan period, the targets for newlines,
doubling and electrification were exceeded. Railways completed 2,207 km of
newlines against target of 2,000 km, doubling of 2,758 km against 2,500 km and
electrification of 4,556 km against a target of 4,500 km.
During the 12th
Five Year Plan period, Indian Railways infrastructure will further expand to
reach the hinterland and frontiers of our nation; iii. Similarly, rolling stock
acquisition also surpassed the targets and 64,875 wagons were acquired against
target of 62,000, a total of 1,288 diesel locos were produced against 1,019,
and 1,218 electric locos against a target of 1,205; iv. Initiatives taken for
construction of two dedicated freight corridors on the eastern and western
routes would lead to strategically critical capacity augmentation, and would
involve construction of dedicated freight lines to carry predominantly coal and
steel on the Eastern Corridor and containers on the Western Corridor. Dedicated
Freight Corridor is an innovation in rail transport in India and will reduce
the transit time to about half of the present levels. The capacity released by
freight trains could then be used for running more passenger trains at higher
speed in a need based manner.
This initiative
would also offer significant reduction of Green House Gas emissions in
transport sector of India;
v. Railways
successfully met the heavy impact of 6th Pay Commission in full during the
period. Total additional payout including arrears from 1st January 2006 has
been more than Rs one lakh crore till now. Significantly, unlike other segments
of the Government, Railways met the additional expenditure within its own
means, from its own earnings. The huge requirement did cause some hardships, but
the organisation successfully overcame them and emerged stronger.
Significantly, but
for the additional financial burden caused by the Pay Commission, the resource
position of Railways would have been correspondingly that much healthier; vi.
Extension of rail connectivity to the northeastern states has been a focus area
of our government to bring prosperity to these areas and also strengthen the
national integration. I am happy to inform the august House that as a result of
additional financial support provided to Railways at the instance of the
Hon’ble Prime Minister, we are now on course to convert the strategically
important 510 Km long Rangiya - Murkongselek Metre Gauge line into Broad Gauge
within this financial year. vii. The Capital of Arunanchal Pradesh would soon
be on rail map in this financial year, as Harmuti-Naharlagun newline is
expected to be commissioned shortly. The state of Meghalaya is also all set to
come on the Railway map in this financial year, as Dudhnoi – Mehendipathar
newline is getting completed by March 2014; viii. Expansion of Railway Network:
During the year we completed 1,532 km of New Line, Doubling and Gauge
Conversion against a revised target of 1,525 km. Sections commissioned in
2013-14 include: New Lines
a. Karur – Salem
(85 Km) b. Koderma – Nawadih (34 Km) 3
c. Lalitpur –
Tikamgarh (51.5 Km) d. New Morinda to Sanewal (54 Km) thereby complete
commissioning of Chandigarh – Ludhiana e. Qazigund – Banihal (19 Km) f. Kadur –
Chikmaglur (46 Km) Gauge Conversion:
a. Hanumangarh –
Sriganganagar (64Km) b. Manamadurai – Virudunagar (67 Km) c. Darum Madhepura –
Murliganj (22 Km) d. Kolar – Chickballapur (85 Km) e. Rangiya – Rangapara North
– Dekargaon (145 Km) Doubling:
a. Panskura –
Shyamchak (27 km) 3rd Line b. Muri – Tulin (1.5 km) Doubling 2nd Bridge over
River Subernarekha c. Jirat – Ambika Kalna (20.23 km) d. Magrahat – Diamond
Harbour (15 km) e. Kursela-Karagola (17 km) f. Katereah-Kosi cabin (4km) g.
Madur – Mandya (19 km) h. Birur – Ajjampur (18km) ix. Three new factories viz.
Rail Wheel Plant in district Chhapra, Rail Coach Factory at Rae Bareli and
Diesel Component Factory at Dankuni have become functional and commenced
production; x. Specially designed coaches for adverse weather conditions have
been inducted for rail travel in Kashmir Valley.
Also corrosion
resistant and lighter wagons with capability to carry extra pay-load and higher
speed potential up to 100 kmph have been developed; and xi. Railways have been
promoting sports since 1928. In the year 2012-13, we recruited about 500 sports
persons. I take pride in stating that Railways’ sportspersons have a dominating
presence in the national teams in various disciplines and won titles in 23
disciplines and were runners up in 9 disciplines in various national events.
Our sportspersons have also represented the country in various International
Championships and won a total of 2 Gold, 4 Silver and 3 Bronze Medals.
8. Madam, Indian
Railways had formulated Policy Unigauge in the year 1992 to convert selected
Metre/Narrow Gauge routes to Broad Gauge to avoid transhipment, improve rolling
stock utilisation, achieve higher throughput and to foster development in
various parts of the country. I am happy to report that a total of 19,214 km of
non-Broad Gauge lines have been converted to Broad Gauge. People in several
States including Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka,
Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Tamil Nadu have been the major beneficiaries.
9. Madam, this
august House has in the past expressed deep concern over some unfortunate
accidents and I painfully acknowledge my anguish and grief at the loss of
lives. However, I must assure the House that safety is never compromised on the
system and several measures have been and are being taken for its further
strengthening. Some of these are :
i. Manning or
elimination of all unmanned level crossings and provision of ROBs/RUBs in lieu
of manned level crossings with heavy traffic density in a time bound manner is
a commitment of Railways. Towards this end, a total of 5,400 unmanned level
crossings were eliminated – 2,310 by manning and 3,090 by closure / merger /
construction of ROBs/RUBs during the last five years;
ii. Planning for
induction of indigenously developed Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS)
over Indian Railways after successfully completing field trials;
iii. Provision of
improved safety systems with audio visual warning to road users in advance of
approaching trains;
iv. Development of ‘crashworthy’
structural design capable of absorbing high impact loads in unfortunate case of
collision/accidents;
v. Offering
employment to over 1 lakh persons against existing vacancies in Group C
categories in the last five years, and to 1.6 lakh persons in erstwhile Group D
categories; vi. Provision of Vigilance Control Device (VCD) in all electric and
diesel locomotives to monitor and judge the alertness of driver to ensure
safety of the train; vii. A few unfortunate accidents involving fire in trains
have occurred in the recent past, leading to loss of precious lives. Even
though some of these incidents were caused due to inadvertent acts of
negligence on the part of passengers, Railways have initiated action to ensure
that such incidents are averted at all costs and loss of lives eliminated. A
Comprehensive Fire and Smoke Detection System is on trial on two rakes of
Rajdhani Express trains. Based on the success of these trials, this will be
extended to all major passenger trains; and
viii. Besides, various
measures undertaken to prevent fire incidents on trains are as under:
a. Use of fire
retardant materials inside coaching vehicles;
b. Multi-tier
protection for electric circuits;
c. Provision of
portable fire extinguishers in AC coaches, Guard-cum-luggage break vans, pantry
cars and locomotives;
d. Introduction of
electrical induction based cooking appliances in replacement of LPG in pantries
and e. Intensive checks on parcel vans and Guard-cum-luggage break vans against
explosives and inflammable materials. Financial Health
10. Madam, I firmly
believe that Indian Railways is primarily a commercial organization and it must
operate in a financially self sustaining manner. Major segments of its business
- freight as well as passenger - should be market driven, address needs of
users, provide value for money and avoid tendencies to exploit its dominant
presence in the transport sector.
11. Inadequacy of
financial resources is a key constraint to Railways following the desired path.
Aspirations of the people channelized through their elected representatives for
extending the rail network to their regions are all valid and need to be
respected. In fact, Railways have happily acknowledged and accepted many of
these. Despite limited availability of funding, Railways have been able to
implement and complete many projects of new lines, doubling, gauge conversion,
metropolitan transport, road over/under bridges in addition to construction of
workshops, improvement of user services and electrification.
12. I wish to place
on record my appreciation of the initiative of the State Governments of
Karnataka, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Haryana for agreeing to
share cost of several Rail projects in their respective areas, and appeal to
other State Governments to follow suit. This will go a long way in catalysing
creation of Rail infrastructure for overall national growth. 6
13. While efforts
of the government to provide precious financial resources for growth of Indian
Railways would undoubtedly continue, the phenomenal investment needs of rail
infrastructure cannot be met entirely through Gross Budgetary Support, Internal
Generation of Railways and Market Borrowing. Railways have therefore started
targeting private investment in rail infrastructure to bridge the gap. Public
Private Partnership (PPP)
14. Investment in
Railways is being stepped up by partnership with the private sector. PPP
projects related to rolling stock manufacturing units, modernisation of railway
stations, multi-functional complexes, logistics parks, private freight
terminal, freight train operations, liberalised wagon investment schemes, and
Dedicated Freight Corridors are in the pipeline and offer excellent
opportunities for private investment in the 12th Plan.
15. Apart from
attracting private investments from domestic investors in rail sector, a
proposal is under consideration of the Government to enable Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) to foster creation of world class rail infrastructure.
16. Rail Land
Development Authority was set a challenging target of raising Rs 1,000 crore in
the Budget 2013-14. I am happy to report that they are on course and have
already raised Rs 937 crore so far. Modernisation and Technology Induction
17. Within
available resources, Indian Railways have always endeavoured to usher in new
technology for modernisation and enhanced delivery to rail users. Dedicated
Freight Corridors for exclusive running of heavy haul freight trains, High
Speed Trains Project, and Semi-High Speed project are recent initiatives taken
in this direction. Dedicated Freight Corridor Project
18. Implementation
of the Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Corridors project is making good
progress with the award of nearly 1,100 km of civil construction contracts till
now. During 2014-15, another 1,000 km of civil construction contracts are
targeted, besides award of Systems contracts. High Speed Trains Project
19. As agreed
between Honourable Prime Ministers of India and Japan in May 2013, a joint
Feasibility Study for Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed corridor, co-financed by
Indian Railways and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), has started
in December 2013, and will be completed in 18 months.
For the same
corridor, a Business Development study being undertaken by French Railways
(SNCF) will be completed by April 2014. After the studies, Indian Railways will
decide on further course of action and modalities for implementation of the
project.
Semi-High Speed
Project
20. Besides the
High Speed project, Indian Railways also intend to explore low cost options for
raising speeds to 160-200 kmph on existing select routes like Delhi-Agra and
Delhi-Chandigarh. Green Initiatives
21. Madam Speaker,
the role of Indian Railways in preserving the environment has been widely
acknowledged. Besides energy efficiency of rail transport, initiatives to
promote use of renewable and clean energy have been part of our approach.
Railway Energy Management Company has become functional and is working on
setting up of windmill plants, solar power plants, with about 40% subsidy from
Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. To begin with, 200 railway stations,
roof top of 26 buildings and 2,000 level crossing gates would be covered. 22. I
take great pride in informing the august House that as an eloquent testimony to
our energy conservation efforts, Railways bagged
22 out of 112
awards being given away by the Government in 2013.
23. With a view to
improving aesthetic ambience along the track close to the approach of major
stations, creation of ‘Green Curtains’ at Agra and Jaipur stations is being
undertaken on pilot basis. This will involve construction of RCC boundary wall
of appropriate height along the railway boundary up to a suitable distance,
landscaping from the track to the wall and within station circulating area, and
arrangements for appropriate watch and ward to check open defecation and
littering. Once the pilot projects succeed, we intend to invite corporate
entities to participate in this programme at other stations through their
Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, besides obtaining support of
municipalities and local bodies.
24. Marking a major
development towards cleanliness in the coaches and on railway tracks, a
bio-toilet design has been adopted by the railways and the technology has been
introduced in about 2,500 coaches. It is proposed to increase the coverage
progressively. 8
Passenger Friendly
Initiatives
25. Indian Railways
has always strived to improve its customer related services and the continued
drive has resulted in their gradual improvement. The success of e-booking of
tickets has surpassed all expectations and provided a convenient means to our customers
to interface with the Railways from the comfort of their homes and offices.
Train movements can
also be tracked online to find the exact location and running. Besides, 51
Jan-Ahaar outlets for sale of Janta Meals have been set up; 48 passenger escalators
have been commissioned at railway stations and 61 more are being installed;
air-conditioned EMU services will commence in Mumbai area by July 2014; and
Passenger Information Display System in important trains to indicate the next
station and expected arrival time is being provided.
26. The scheme for
upgradation of passengers introduced in the year 2006 is proposed to be
extended to second class sitting, AC Chair car and Executive chair car
passengers. This will facilitate utilisation of vacant accommodation in the
higher classes and optimise demand satisfaction in the lower classes. Demand
Management through Dynamic Pricing
27. There are
seasonal and occasion-specific instances when the demand for travel by certain
trains goes up and the level of demand satisfaction becomes low. Passengers are
prepared on such occasions to pay more to undertake their journey. Keeping this
in view, a Premium Air-Conditioned Special was introduced on the busy Delhi –
Mumbai sector with shorter Advance Reservation Period in December 2013 –
January 2014. The fare charged included a dynamically varying premium over
tatkal fare of the Rajdhani services. Such dynamic pricing was widely
appreciated by the users and the media and gave increased earnings of about 48%
as compared to Rajdhani services on the same sector. We are considering
operation of this scheme on larger scale. Enhancing Market Share
28. Railways
propose to lay further emphasis on improving its market share through a mix of
strategies. These would involve inter alia improved use of assets, including
wagon turn round by ensuring improved operation and maintenance practices to
enhance asset availability, intensive monitoring and improvement in the
condition of freight terminals through result oriented investments, and laying
emphasis on completion of various on-going line capacity works on critical
sections. 9
29. In addition to
the above measures, Indian Railways is also further enhancing throughput by
clearing missing links in ‘CC+8’ (Carrying Capacity+8 tonne) routes, increasing
freight train speed by upgrading the rolling stock as well increasing the
length of trains, besides introducing a tariff and incentives regime that
encourages shift of traffic to rail and minimizes empty running. All these
measures will ensure that the unit cost of operation is brought down further.
Rail Tariff Authority
30. Madam, In a
path breaking decision, an independent Rail Tariff Authority is being set-up to
advise the Government on fixing of fares and freight. Determination of rates
will no longer be an exercise behind veils where the Railways and the users
could only peep covertly at what was happening on the other side.
31. The Rail Tariff
Authority will not only consider the requirements of the Railways but also
engage with all stake-holders to usher in a new pricing regime through a
transparent process. This would lead to an era of rationalisation of fares and
freight structures for improving the fare–freight ratio and gradually bringing
down cross subsidization between different segments. It is expected that this
would go a long way towards improving the financial health of the Railways,
lead to growth to match expectations of the nation and provide stability by
minimizing volatility of revenue streams. Information Technology
32. Madam,
Information Technology has revolutionized our customer interface over the last
few years. We intend to continue the process. Some of the initiatives that
would be taken are -proliferation of cash accepting Automatic Ticket Vending
Machines; Ticketing on mobile phones in the unreserved segment; PNR status
update to passengers through system generated SMS; an update for train running
information; Online booking of retiring rooms at all important stations; Online
booking of meals on trains for selected en-route stations; Introduction of
e-forwarding note and electronic transmission of railway receipts for freight
customers, which will enable users to carry out freight business with Railways
from the comfort of their homes and offices; and Computerisation of claims
settlement process on Indian Railways.
Revenue Freight
Traffic
33. A target of
loading 1,047 million tonnes during 2013-14 was set for Indian Railways. I am
happy to inform the House that we would surpass the Budget estimate.
34. In order to
increase the share of rail borne traffic, an innovative “Empty Flow Discount
Scheme” is being formulated and will be implemented shortly. For further
increasing throughput on the existing network, carrying additional traffic and
bolstering freight earnings, universalisation of all routes on Indian Railways
as ‘CC+9+1’ (Carrying Capacity+9 tonne+1 tonne) is being planned.
35. Container
traffic has witnessed rapid growth in the last few years. For facilitating
seamless transport of imported cargo, some of the restrictions on movement of
imported commodities through containers have been eased. Further, to increase
throughput of container traffic, the permissible carrying capacity of 20 feet
containers has been enhanced by 4 tonnes by necessary upgrade of rolling stock.
36. There is a vast
potential to be tapped in the area of parcel traffic. An aggressive strategy
has been evolved for attracting more such traffic to rail. Parcel trains will
be run from nominated parcel terminals which have been already notified for
achieving the above, and Special Parcel Trains will be run on scheduled
timings, so that time-sensitive cargo can be attracted. A new policy on parcels
will be formulated which shall also encourage transportation of milk across the
country. A new concept of hub and spoke for parcel business will be introduced.
Third party warehousing in Special Parcel Terminals is also envisaged.
Financial Performance, 2012-13
37. Madam Speaker,
I would now like to present in brief the final results for the previous fiscal,
2012-13. I am happy to report that the freight loading by the Railways at 1,008
million tonnes surpassed the revised target of 1,007 million tonnes. Railways
paid full dividend of Rs 5,389 crore to the General Exchequer. The Operating
Ratio finally achieved was 90.2%, an improvement over 94.9% in 2011-12. The
Fund balances, which were at negative Rs 385 crore at the beginning of the
year, finally closed at a positive Rs 2,391 crore even after full repayment,
including interest, of the loan of Rs 3,000 crore taken in the previous year.
11
Financial
Performance, 2013-14
38. Given the
promising trend of loading, the target has been scaled up to about 1052 million
tonnes from the budget target of 1047 million tonnes. However, the average lead
of freight traffic is falling, and is likely to be 622 km against budgeted
644.5 km. Yet, we are confident of surpassing the freight earnings target which
has been increased to Rs 94,000 crore from Rs. 93,554 crore in Budget Estimates.
Considering the
trend of passenger earnings, the revised target has been kept at Rs 37,500
crore.
39. There has been
continuing strong inflationary pressure on the input costs, especially the cost
of fuel, both HSD Oil and electrical energy.
There has also been
a higher than expected burden on account of significant fresh recruitment in
many safety categories, additional dearness allowance for Railway employees and
dearness relief for Railway pensioners.
Yet, as a result of
stringent and close monitoring, the increase under Ordinary Working Expenses
has been kept at a modest Rs 560 crore only. However, pension allocation
requirements have gone up by a more significant Rs 2,000 crore.
Dividend payment to
General Revenues has also gone up by Rs 1,591crore with the increase in the
rate from 4% to 5%.
40. Considering the
trend of earnings and expenditure, the revised plan outlay stands at Rs 59,359
crore.
Operating Ratio of
Railways is likely to be 90.8% as against budgeted target of 87.8%.
41. I would like to
assure the House that continuing the happy trend of 201213, and in a marked
improvement from the two earlier years, Railways will end the current year with
surplus, and fund balances would increase from Rs 2,391 crore at the beginning
of current fiscal to Rs 8,018 crore at the end of March, 2014.
This is primarily
attributable to strict fiscal discipline enforced by the organisation. Budget
Estimates, 2014-15
42. Madam, I shall
now deal with the Budget Estimates for 2014-15.
43. Anticipating a
healthier growth of economy, the freight traffic target is proposed at 1,101
million tonnes, an increment of 49.7 million tonnes over the current years’
revised target of about 1052 million tonnes.
44. The Budget
Estimates for goods, passenger, other coaching and sundry other earnings have
been kept at Rs. 1,05,770 crore, Rs. 45,255 crore, Rs 4,200 crore and Rs. 5,500
crore respectively in 2014-15. The Gross Traffic Receipts have been projected
at Rs. 1,60,775 crore.
45. Madam, Ordinary
Working Expenses have been proposed at Rs. 1,10,649 crore, which is Rs. 13,589
crore higher than the Revised Estimates for the current year. This will take
care of additional requirements on account of fresh recruitment, increase in
dearness allowance rates, increase in fuel bill, higher lease charges payable
to IRFC and general inflationary increases. Pension outgo has been budgeted at
Rs. 27,000 crore, as against Revised Estimates, 2013-14 of Rs. 24,000 crore.
Total Working
Expenses are budgeted at Rs. 1,44,199 crore as against Rs. 1,27,260 crore in
Revised Estimates, 2013-14. This will leave a Net Revenue before dividend of
Rs. 19,655 crore, and operating ratio of 89.8%. Dividend payable to General
Revenues is estimated at Rs. 9,117 crore. It is estimated that at the end of
2014-15 the balance under the Railway Funds will be Rs 12,728 crore as against
Rs 8018 crore in Revised Estimates, 2013-14. Annual Plan 2014-15
46. The Annual Plan
2014-15 envisages investment of Rs. 64,305 crore as against Budget Estimates
2013-14 of Rs. 63,363 crore and Revised Estimates, 2013-14 of Rs. 59,359 crore.
The Budgetary Support from General Revenues has been proposed at Rs. 30,223
crore including Rs. 1,223 crore as Railways’ share from Diesel Cess, and Rs.
6,000 crore earmarked for National Projects. Internal Generation component in
the Plan has been kept at Rs. 13,500 crore, besides a drawdown of Rs. 777 crore
from the available balance in the Railway Safety Fund. Extra Budgetary Resources
including market borrowings through IRFC, ‘PPP’ and other schemes has been
pegged at Rs. 19,805 crore.
47. Madam, I would
like to thank all the Parliamentary Committees including the Railway Convention
Committee for their full support. New Services
48. Madam, I have
received several demands for new trains. The existing congestion on many of our
routes does not permit the railways to increase the number of trains. Besides,
running of more passenger trains also affects the freight carrying capacity of
railways. Yet I am conscious of the responsibility devolving on the railways
towards addressing requirements of the people for additional trains in a need
and merit based manner. Despite severe constraints, I am happy to inform the
august House that we have decided to introduce a few new trains during 201415.
49. Premium Trains:
i. Howrah – Pune AC
Express (Bi-weekly) via Nagpur, Manmad
ii. Kamakhya – New
Delhi AC Express (Weekly) via Chhapra, Varanasi
iii. Kamakhya –
Chennai AC Express (Weekly) via Malda, Howrah
iv. Mumbai – Howrah
AC Express (Bi-weekly) via Nagpur, Raipur
v. Mumbai – Patna
AC Express (Bi-weekly) via Khandwa, Itarsi, Manikpur vi. Nizamuddin – Madgaon
AC Express (Bi-weekly) via Kota, Vasai Road vii. Sealdah –Jodhpur AC Express (Bi-weekly)
via Mughalsarai viii. Yesvantpur - Jaipur AC Express (Weekly) via Gulbarga,
Pune, Vasai Road ix. Ahmedabad – Delhi Sarai Rohilla Express (Tri-weekly) via
Palanpur, Ajmer, Rewari x. Bandra – Amritsar Express (Weekly) Via Kota, New
Delhi, Ambala xi. Bandra (T) – Katra Express (Weekly) via Kota, New Delhi,
Ambala xii. Gorakhpur – New Delhi Express (Bi-weekly) via Lucknow, Moradabad
xiii. Katra – Howrah Express (Weekly) Express via Mughalsarai, Varanasi,
Saharanpur xiv. Mumbai – Gorakhpur Express ( Bi-weekly) via Khandwa, Jhansi,
Kanpur xv. Patna– Bangalore Express (Weekly) via Mughalsarai, Chheoki,
Manikpur, Nagpur xvi. Yesvantpur – Katra Express (Weekly) via Gulbarga,
Kacheguda, Nagpur, New Delhi xvii. Thiruvananthpuram – Bangalore (Yesvantpur)
Express (Bi- weekly) via Erode, Tirupattur
50. Express Trains
: i. Ahmedabad – Katra Express (Weekly) via Palanpur, Jaipur, Rewari, Hisar,
Bathinda, Amritsar ii. Ahmedabad – Lucknow Jn Express (Weekly) via Palanpur,
Jaipur, Bandikui, Mathura, Kasganj
iii. Ahmedabad –
Allahabad Express (Weekly) via Jalgaon, Khandwa, Itarsi, Satna, Manikpur iv.
Amritsar – Gorakhpur Express (Weekly) via Saharanpur, Moradabad, Sitapur Cantt.
v. Aurangabad –
Renigunta Express (Weekly) via Parbhani, Bidar, Vikarabad vi. Bangalore –
Chennai Express (Daily) via Bangarpet, Jolarpettai vii. Bandra (T) – Lucknow Jn
Express (Weekly) via Kota, Mathura, Kasganj viii. Bareilly – Bhopal Express
(Weekly) via Chandausi, Aligarh, Tundla, Agra
ix. Bhavnagar –
Bandra Express (Weekly) via Ahmedabad x. Bhavnagar- Delhi Sarai Rohilla Link
Express (Weekly)
xi. Gandhidham –
Puri Express (Weekly) xii. Gorakhpur – Pune Express (Weekly) via Lucknow,
Kanpur, Bina, Manmad
xiii.
Guntur-Kacheguda Double Decker Express (Bi-weekly);
xiv. Howrah –
Yeswantpur AC Express (Weekly)via Bhubaneswar, Gudur, Katpadi xv. Hubli –
Mumbai Express (weekly) via Bijapur, Sholapur xvi. Hyderabad – Gulbarga
Intercity (Daily)
xvii. Jaipur –
Chandigarh Intercity (Daily) via Jhajjar;
xviii. Kacheguda –
Tirupati Double Decker Express (Bi Weekly); xix. Kota – Jammu Tawi Express
(Weekly) via New Delhi, Ambala
xx. Kanpur – Bandra
(T) Express (Weekly) via Kasganj, Mathura, Kota xxi. Lucknow – Kathgodam
Express (Tri-weekly) xxii. Manduadih – Jabalpur Express (Weekly) via Allahabad,
Manikpur, Satna
xxiii. Malda Town –
Anand Vihar Express (Weekly) via Amethi & Rae Bareli; xxiv. Mannargudi –
Jodhpur Express (Weekly) via, Jaipur
xxv. Mumbai –
Chennai Express (Weekly) via Pune, Gulbarga, Wadi xxvi. Mumbai – Gorakhpur
Express (Weekly) via Gonda, Balrampur, Barhani (after gauge conversion);
xxvii. Mumbai –
Karmali AC Express (Weekly) via Roha xxviii. Nanded – Aurangabad Express
(Weekly) via Purna, Parbhani xxix. Nagpur – Rewa Express (Weekly) via Satna
xxx. Nagercoil –
Kacheguda Express (Weekly) via Karur, Namakkal, Salem xxxi. Pune – Lucknow
Express (Weekly) via Khandwa, Bhopal, Bina, Jhansi, Kanpur xxxii. Ramnagar –
Chandigarh Express (Weekly) via Moradabad, Saharanpur xxxiii. Ranchi – New
Jalpaiguri Express (Weekly) via Jhajha, Katihar xxxiv. Secunderabad –
Visakhapatnam AC Express (Weekly) via Kazipeth, Vijaywada xxxv. Santragachi –
Anandvihar Express (Weekly) xxxvi. Srigangnagar – Jammu Tawi Express (Weekly)
via Abohar, Bathinda, Dhuri xxxvii. Thiruvananathapuram-Nizamuddin Express (Bi-weekly)
one day via Kottayam and one day via Allepey xxxviii. Varanasi – Mysore Express
(Bi-weekly) via Wadi, Daund Passenger trains :
i. Bina – Katni
Passenger (Daily) ii. Dekargaon – Naharlagun Passenger (Daily) after completion
of new line iii. Gunupur - Visakhapatnam Passenger (Daily) iv. Hubli - Belgaum
Fast Passenger (Daily) v. Jaipur – Phulera Passenger (Daily) 15
vi. Mannargudi –
Mayiladuthurai Passenger (Daily) vii. Punalur – Kanniyakumari Passenger (Daily)
via Kollam, Thiruvananthapuram viii. Sambalpur – Bhawanipatna Passenger (Daily)
ix. Tatanagar –
Chakulia Passenger (Daily) x. Tiruchendur – Tirunelveli Passenger (Daily)
51. MEMU Trains :
i. Anand – Dakor (Daily 2 services) ii. Anuppur-Ambikapur (6 days a week) iii.
Delhi – Rohtak Passenger (Daily 2 services)
iv. Santragachi –
Jhargram (5 days a week)
52. DEMU Trains :
i. Morbi – Maliya Miyana ii. Ratlam – Fatehabad Chandrawati Ganj (Daily) after
gauge conversion iii. Rewari – Rohtak (Daily)
53. Extension of
Trains i. 14705/14706 Delhi Sarai Rohilla – Sujangarh Express to Jodhpur
ii. 15281/15282
Patna – Saharsa Express to Murliganj iii. 15013 / 15014 Kathgodam – Bhagat Ki
Kothi Ranikhet Express to Jaisalmer
54. Increase in
Frequency: i. 16571/16572 Bidar – Yesvantpur Express 3 days to daily ii.
17225/17226 Hubli – Vijayawada Express from 3 days to daily iii. 17319/17320
Hubli – Secunderabad Express from 3 days to daily Surveys
55. A large number
of requests have been received from honourable Members, State Governments and
other dignitaries for undertaking railway projects in their areas. The planning
process of the railways requires a proper survey to ascertain the need for and
viability of the project before it can be sanctioned.
56. On the basis of
requests received from the hon’ble members, state governments and others,
following surveys are proposed to be taken up in 201415:
New Lines :
i. Tiptur – Dudda
ii. Nimach – Singoli - Kota iii. Dahod – Modasa 16
iv. Karad –
Kadegaon – Lenare – Kharsundi – Attapadi – Diganchi – Mahud - Pandharpur v.
Etah – Aligarh vi. Karnal – Yamuna Nagar via Asandih vii. Extension of
Tindivanam – Nagari new line up to Puducherry viii. Challekere – Hiriyur –
Huliyur – Chikkanayakanahalli – KB Cross – Turuvekere - Channarayanpatna ix.
Betul – Chandur Bazar - Amravati x. Chakia – Kesariya (Kaithwalia) xi. Miraj –
Kavathemahankal – Jath - Bijapur xii. Pune – Baramati via Saswad, Jejuri,
Moregaon xiii. Etawah – Auraiya – Bhognipur – Ghatampur – Jahanabad – Bakewar –
Bindki Road xiv. Haldaur – Dhampur xv. Belgaum – Hubli via Kitturu xvi. Pune –
Ahmednagar via Kegdaon Kasti xvii. Bellary – Lingasugur via Siruguppa,
Sindhanur xviii. Ghatanandur – Shrigonda Road / Daund via Kaij, Manjarsumbha,
Patoda and Jamkhed xix. Birari – Mahatoni – Marwara – Mandanpur – Dhamoni -
Sagar Doubling
57. Following
surveys for doubling are proposed to be taken up in 2014-15:-i. Latur Road –
Kurduwadi ii. Pune – Kolhapur iii. Allahabad – Pratapgarh iv. Salem – Omalur v.
Prabhani – Parli
58. The task on
hand is difficult and challenges are big. Yet we are determined to march on and
take this magnificent organisation to even greater heights. This would require
continued efforts of all members of Rail Pariwar and cooperation of all segments
of society and the Government.
59. Madam, as I
come to the end of my speech, valuable words of Pt. Jawahar Lal Nahru come to
my mind. “A great national and state-owned organisation, like the Railways, is
not only an asset of importance but is also a great responsibility. It can only
be run with the fullest cooperation of all those engaged in it, keeping in view
always the good of the public as well as the good of those engaged in serving
the public through this vast organisation.”
60. With these words,
Madam, I commend the Interim Railway Budget for 2014-15 to the august House.
