HIGHLIGHTS OF RAILWAY BUDGET 2010-11

• Of the 120 new trains, extensions and increase in frequencies announced,
  117 would be flagged off by the end of March 2010.
• Recruitment policy of the Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs) has been
  reviewed. 
• RRB  examination  fee  for  woman  candidates  and  those  belonging  to
  minority and economically backward classes waived.
• All question papers to be set in Hindi, Urdu, English and in local State
  languages and examination for a particular post will be held on the same
  date simultaneously by all RRBs.
• Izzat Scheme, implemented within three months of announcement.
• Work  initiated  in  all  the  67  Multi-functional  Complexes (MFCs).
  Development of Adarsh Stations started in phases.

Passenger Amenities/Facilities

• 94 stations to be upgraded as Adarsh Stations
• 10 more stations identified to be converted as World Class Stations
• Construction of additional 93 Multi Functional Complexes
• Multi-level parking through PPP route.
• Six  clean  drinking  water  bottling  plants  to  be  set  up  through  PPP  for
  providing cheap bottled drinking water.
• SMS updates of reservation status and punctuality of trains to passengers,
• SMS updates on the movement of wagons to freight customers.
• RFID technology for tracking of wagons to  provide  modern  trolleys  at  all  important  stations  to  be  handled  by
  uniformed attendants for senior citizens and ladies.
• Allotment of iron ore rakes to be rationalised scientifically and would be
  accessible through the web.
• Introduction of e-ticket based mobile vans for issuing tickets.

Safety and Security

• Automatic fire and smoke detection system to be introduced in 20 long
  distance trains.
• All the unmanned LCs to be manned within five years. 
• 12  companies  of  women  RPF  personnel  named  ‘Mahila  Vahini’  to  be
  raised.

Sports

• Railways first recipient of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar
• Five  Sports  Academies  at  Delhi,  Secunderabad,  Chennai,  Kolkata  and
  Mumbai to be setup.
• Astro-turfs to be provided at more places for hockey.
• Railways will be lead partners of Common Wealth Games.
• Railways to run a Commonwealth exhibition train.

Culture and Heritage

• To  set  up  a  Railway  Cultural  &  Heritage  Promotion  Board  for
  coordinating and supervising all related activities on the railways.
• To set up Rabindra Museum at Howrah and Gitanjali Museum at Bolpur
  to commemorate 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore.
• To set up Shambhu Mitra Cultural Complex with performing arts and a
  music academy at Howrah.

Staff Welfare and Health

• A new scheme “House for All” to be launched, to provide residences to
  all railway employees in the next ten years with the help of Ministry of
  Urban Development.
• MOU entered with Ministry of Health and Ministry of Human Resource
  Development  for  setting  up  of  hospitals  and  educational  institutions  on
  surplus railway land. 
• To  set  up  about  522  hospitals  and  diagnostic  centres,  50  Kendriya
  Vidyalayas, 10 residential schools on the pattern of Navodaya Vidyalaya,
  model  degree  colleges  and  technical  and  management  institutions  of
  national importance to benefit railway employees and their children.
• To  set  up  50  crèches  for  children  of  women  employees  and  20  hostels.
  Railways  will  also  provide  more  numbers  of  community  centres  and
  stadia.
• Contribution  to  Staff  Benefit Fund  to  be  enhanced  to  Rs  500  per
  employee.  
• Scope  of  safety-related  retirement  scheme  to  be  expanded  to  cover  all
  safety category staff with a grade pay of Rs 1800.
• To  extend  Rashtriya  Swasthya  Bima  Yojana  to  all  licensed  porters,
  vendors and hawkers, from unorganised sector and socially challenged.
• To  set  up  a  state-of-the-art  advanced  loco  pilot  training  centre  at
  Kharagpur, an  advanced railway track training centre at Beleghata   and
  four multi-disciplinary training centres.

Railway Research

• A  Centre  for  Railway  Research  to  be  set  up  at  IIT,  Kharagpur.  To
  establish  strong  research  partnerships  with  premier  institutes  like  IITs,
  NITs, CSIR and DRDO.

Infrastructure

• To modernize and augment the capacity of CLW to 275 locomotives.
• A Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) factory to be set up at Sankrail.
• Second unit to be installed at ICF.
• Wagon repair shop to be set up at Badnera.
• Centres  of  Excellence  in  Wagon  Prototyping  to  be  set  up  at  Kharagpur
  Workshop.
• A new  Rail  Axle  Factory  to  be  set up in  New  Jalpaiguri under  PPP/JV
  mode.
• A  Design  Development  and  Testing  Centre  for  Wheels  to  be  set  up  at
  RWF, Bangalore.
• A  new  MLR  workshop  of  250  coach  capacity  to  be  set  up  at  Anara
  (Adra).
• Five  state-of-the-art  wagon  factories  to  set  up  at  Secunderabad,
  Barddhaman,  Bhubaneshwar/Kalahandi,  Guwahati  and  Haldia  under
  PPP/JV mode.
• Two  workshops  for  POH  of  high  axle  load  wagons  to  be  set  up  in
  Maharashtra and Dankuni.
• Kisan  Vision  Project  initiated  at  six  locations,  namely  Dankuni,
  Mechheda,  Nasik,  New  Jalpaiguri,  New  Azadpur  and  Singur  as  pilot
  projects.
• To set up a refrigerated container factory on PPP mode at Budge Budge.

Freight Business

• A modified wagon investment scheme for high capacity general purpose
  and special purpose wagons to be introduced.
• Private  operators  to  be  permitted  to  invest  in  infrastructure  and  run
  special freight train.
• To set up automobile and ancillary hubs at 10 locations.

Carbon Footprint

• Railways to distribute 2.6 million CFLs to railway employees.
• To introduce ten rakes with green toilets and install on diesel locomotives
  a GPS-based optimised driver guidance system.
• To set up 10 Rail Eco-parks to conserve, protect and promote Railways’
  wetlands and forest areas.

Other Projects

• Preliminary  Engineering-cum-Traffic  Survey  (PETS)  to  be  taken  up  for
  north-south, east-west, east-south and south-south DFCs.
• Six high speed passenger corridors identified, to be executed through PPP
  mode.  To  set  up  a  National  High  Speed  Rail  Authority  for  planning,
  standard setting, implementing and monitoring these projects.
• To  provide  rail  link  between         Akhaura  on  Bangladesh  side  and
  Agartala on Indian side.  
• To new Railway projects viz., Jogbani (India) – Biratnagar (Nepal) new
  line  and  Jaynagar  (India)  –  Bijalpur  (Nepal)  gauge  conversion  with
  extension upto Bardibas(Nepal) have been taken up to improve transport
  infrastructure between the two countries.

Financial Performance in 2009-10.

• Loading target of 882 MT likely to surpassed by 8 MT in 2009-10.
• Gross Traffic Receipts kept at Rs. 88,356 crore, i.e an increase of 10.7%.
• The full impact of VI CPC fully absorbed within the Railway resources.
• The current dividend liability to be fully discharged.
• Annual Plan kept at Rs 40,284 cr.

Budget Estimates 2010-11.

• Freight loading targeted at 944 MT – an increment of 54 MT; number of
  passengers likely to grow by 5.3 %.
• Gross Traffic Receipts estimated at Rs. 94,765 crore, i.e Rs 6490 cr more
  than 2009-10.
• The dividend payable to general revenues kept at Rs 6608 cr.
• Budgeted operating ratio 92.3%.

Annual Plan 2010-11

• Highest ever Plan Outlay at Rs 41,426 cr., an  increase of Rs 1142 cr over
  2009-10.
  • New Lines – Rs 4411cr.
  • Passenger Amenities–Rs 1302 cr.
  • Metro Projects – Rs 1001cr.
• Aquisition of 18000 wagons.
• Additional budgetary support of Rs 3701 cr sought for 11 National
  Projects.
• Surveys for 114 socially desirable projects connecting backward areas to
  be taken up.
• 54 Surveys for new lines, 2 for gauge conversion, 7 for doubling and 5
  others to be taken up.
• Master Plan for the development of rail infrastructure in the Northeast
  region to be drawn up in consultation with the Northeast Development
  Council and the state authorities concerned.
• 1021 km of New Lines to be completed. 9 new new line projects
  announced.
• 800 km of gauge conversion and 700km of doubling targeted.
• Several projects being taken up on cost sharing basis with State
  Governments and on PPP mode.

• Technicians of regional film industry when travelling for film
  production related work to be eligible for 75% concession in Second
  Sleeper and 50% concession in higher classes in all trains.
• Cancer patients going for treatment to get 100% concession in 3 AC and
  Sleeper Class
• 50% concession to spouse of the correspondents extended to the
  companion of those correspondents who do not have a spouse, and
  dependent children up to 18 years.
• Service charge on e-tickets to be reduced to Rs.10 for Sleeper Class and
  Rs.20 for AC Class.
• Reduction of Rs 100 per wagon in freight charges for food-grains for
  domestic use and kerosene.

• 101 new suburban services to be introduced in Mumbai area.
• More services to start in Chennai and Kolkata areas.

• Sanskriti Express to run across the country to mark the 150th birth
  anniversary of Kabiguru Rabindranath Tagore. It is also proposed to
  take this train to Bangladesh.
• Ladies special trains to be renamed as ‘Matrabhoomi specials’.
• 3 unreserved trains named as ‘Karambhoomi trains’ to be introduced.
• A new weekly express train service ‘Janmabhoomi express’ to start
  between Ahmedabad and Udhampur.
• Special tourist trains called “Bharat Tirth” to start on 16 routes.
• 6 long route Duronto trains and 4 short distance Duronto day trains to be
  introduced.

• 54 new train services to be introduced.
• 28 new passenger train services, 9 MEMU and 8 DEMU services to start.
• Extension of 21 trains and increase in frequency of 12 trains announced.