Railway minister Sadananda Gowda used his budget on Tuesday
— the first major policy showcasing of the Modi government — to signal its
intention of using private sector investments, both domestic and foreign, as
the prime engine of growth and modernization. Having got rid of the difficult
part by hiking rail fares and freight charges late last month, Gowda could
focus his budget speech on the new government's vision for the Railways, and he
did just that.
READ ALSO : Modi
sheds populism baggage from rail budget
The government's vision clearly has a major role for the private sector in
everything from new projects and freight terminals to cleanliness and food on
trains and at stations. As Gowda's speech made clear, "It is our target
that bulk of our future projects will be financed through PPP (public-private
partnership) route".
He argued that while hikes in fares and freight charges were necessary to
sustain financial viability, it would be "unrealistic" to depend
solely on such an approach to raise the resources needed for modernizing the
prime national transporter. That's why, the minister said, his ministry was
seeking Cabinet approval for allowing FDI in the sector.
READ ALSO : Govt
to allow FDI in suburban rail corridors, stations
Gowda was at pains to point out that successive governments in the past had
announced new projects with abandon — falling prey to the "nasha (intoxication)
of claps — but had been lax in implementing them to the extent that some were
pending for three decades. In contrast, he said, the focus now would be on
prioritizing projects. In particular, doubling and trebling of lines to
decongest major routes would get the nod ahead of new lines, which have
typically been unviable.
In keeping with this line of shunning populism and in a radical
departure from historical practice, the minister did not announce any new
projects in his budget, though there were a slew of new trains (including those
announced by the UPA in the interim rail budget) and extensions of existing
ones. Gowda also castigated earlier governments for failing to raise passenger
fares and thus creating a situation in which the loss per passenger kilometre
had risen from 10 paise in 2000-01 to 23 paise in 2012-13.
READ ALSO: Railway
finances hang by 6-paise thread
Describing the noughties as the "decade of golden dilemma - the dilemma of
choosing between commercial viability and social viability", Gowda said
while the Railways would continue to fufil social obligations, doing so beyond
a point was "not possible without compromising on efficiency and
safety".
Despite the pro-corporate and pro-reform tone of the rail budget, stock markets
reacted adversely with the sensex shedding 518 points, its biggest single-day
decline in 10 months. The slump was attributed by market analysts partly to the
absence of details in the budget speech. Also, while corporates and markets are
looking forward to greater fiscal discipline, there's a worry that a stricter
watch on government spending could lower demand and hence hit growth.
READ ALSO: Sensex
tanks 518 points on spending cut fears
The political opposition as well as the railway unions, not surprisingly,
reacted sharply to the budget, with some dubbing it 'elitist' and others
decrying the move to 'privatize' the railways.
The new-look railways, Gowda promised, would include a bullet train between
Mumbai and Ahmedabad, high-speed trains on nine sectors, a greater focus on
cleanliness and decent food and further improvements in the e-ticketing system.
They would also see some stations being developed along the lines of the new
airports through the PPP route.
READ ALSO: High-speed
trains, push for new routes cheer Mumbai
Corporates will not just have a role to play in developing new freight
terminals, they could also adopt stations and take care of their cleanliness
and maintenance. NGOs and charitable institutions too could do so. CCTVs will
be used to monitor cleanliness at stations.
Food courts at major stations, where regional cuisines would be available, and
pre-cooked meals on board from reputed brands are among the promises on the
catering front.
READ ALSO: Taste
of India put on the fast track
Not only will tickets be available for booking online, the facility would also
be extended to booking trains, coaches, or seats. Online booking of retiring
rooms will be extended to all stations in 2014-15, the minister promised.
Business travellers will also, on some select trains, be able to use
workstations for a fee. For the handicapped and elderly, the service of
battery-operated carts will be extended to cover all major stations. Safety of
women too found a mention, with the rail mantri saying 4,000 women RPF
constables would be recruited towards this end. Also, "coaches for ladies
will be escorted" and additional care would be taken of women travelling
alone.
July 12, 2014
Kalaivaraikalai
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