The Hon’ble Railway Minister Shri Suresh P Prabhu has presented a crisp and passenger friendly visionary railway budget for 2016-17. The completing of Phase I of East West Corridor from West Bengal by June 2018 is also a welcome announcement. The freight corridors connecting Kharagpur shall have positive economic spin off for the entire region. The Bengal Chamber gives him 5.5/10.
He had focussed on efforts to achieve fiscal consolidation, efficiency, official accountability, public service upgrading and creation of passenger amenities. As expected he has introduced a number of new and faster trains and announced projects that could please passenger and freight services. His endeavours on joint ventures with states and private and foreign institutions render on a professional corporate outlook for the Railways. Monetisation of assets like lands is one such move.
The 7 mission modes and the 3 pronged policy strategy of NAV ARJAN & NAV MANAK & NAV SANRACHANA along with a National Railway Plan announced by him are futuristic and would work positively for electrification, infrastructure and track building and create an additional 14 crore man days by 2018-19. The proposed setting up of a Railway Planning Investment Organisation would help in future public and private investment. L.I.C investment in Railways is a trendsetter as is the import of 15 trains and their manufacturing in line with the `Make in India’ campaign along with a Rail Auto Hub in Chennai.
While finance continue to remain sluggish due to the incidence of upcoming 7th Pay Commission and a huge burden of cross subsidy the Railway Minister had targeted an operating ratio (OR) of 92%. He, however, has increased CAPEX spending by 10% from 1.10 lakh crore to 1.21 lakh crore also fixed a higher revenue and resource collection target of around Rs 1.84 lakh crore, the details to which would be worked out by the Railway Tariff Committee and is not shown in the budget.