Budget 2019: Railway Budget Highlights
Railway Budget Highlights:
Railway infra will require an investment of 50 lakh crores between 2018 and 2030.
PPP will be used to unleash faster development as well as delivery of passenger freight services.
Railway Station Modernization shall be launched this year.
Indian Railways will be encouraged to invest more in urban and suburban regions.
657KM of Metro Rail operational in the country.
The Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had made her maiden budget of the Modi 2.0 Government in the Lok Sabha on July 5, 2019, in the Parliament.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had proposed a capital expenditure of Rs.1,60,175.64 crore for the Railways Ministry for 2019-20 in Budget 2019. This was the highest-ever allocation for the national transporter, exceeding last year’s Rs.1,48,528 crore.
Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget 2019 speech stated of unleashing the PPP (Public-Private Partnership) for faster development of railway infrastructure which includes rolling stock. Sitharaman also emphasized on how the Dedicated Freight Corridors would decongest the railway network for faster movement of trains. She also stated that Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) shall be encouraged for the suburban railway network development. The requirement for private sector investment rises since Indian Railways needs Rs 50 lakh crore investments till 2030. If the investment is not expedited the project execution is going to be delayed, which the government would want to avoid.
Nirmala Sitharaman stated that development of inland waterways would help in reducing pressure on Indian Railways. She pointed to the requirement for Rs 50 lakh crore investments in Indian Railways till 2030, hereafter stating that the private sector shall be needed to speed up projects. Provided that the capital expenditure outlays of Railways are approximately Rs.1.5 to Rs.1.6 lakh crores per annum, completing even all sanctioned projects will take decades. Ms. Sitharaman stated that it is thus proposed to use Public-Private Partnership towards allowing for faster development as well as completion of tracks, rolling stock manufacturing and delivery of passenger freight services.
She also stated the government would launch a massive program of railway station modernization this year.
Ms. Sitharaman also announced that Indian Railways suburban and long-distance services do a phenomenal task in cities like Mumbai and smaller cities. Railways would be encouraged for investing extra in suburban railways by means of Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) structures like Rapid Regional Transport System (RRTS) which was proposed on the Delhi-Meerut route.
She likewise also suggested towards enhancing the metro railway initiatives through encouraging more PPP initiatives as well as ensuring completion of sanctioned works, while supporting transit-oriented development towards ensuring commercial action around transit hubs. Sitharaman added that they are in the procedure of finishing the dedicated freight corridor project that is going free up some of the existing railway networks for passenger trains.”
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