Today Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu presented his 2nd Railway Budget in the Lok Sabha. Here we are sharing the completeHighlights of Railway Budget.
Under article 112 of the Constitution, a statement of estimated receipts and expenditure of the Government of India has to be laid before Parliament in respect of every financial year which runs from 1st April to 31st March. This Statement titled “Annual Financial Statement” is the main Budget document.
In 1921, the Acworth Committeerecommended, and ratified through the Resolution for separation in 1924, that the Indian Railway finances should be separated from the General Finances.
There are two kinds of budget. One is the railway budget and the other is the general budget. The railway budget precedes the general budget.
The Rail Budget highlights on the improvement in trains and routes. As per convention, the railway budget is presented by the Union Railway Minister in Parliament. The discussion is held on the policies and allocations are made in the budget, which is passed with a simple majority in the Lok Sabha. Since the railway budget is a part and parcel of the total receipts and expenditure of the Government of India hence it is also shown in the General Budget.
Below are the highlights of 2016 Railway Budget as presented by Railway Minister.
In 2016-17, the capital plan will be Rs. 1,21,000 crore.For year 2016-17 we expect the operating ratio of 92%. It is a financial ratio used for large industries to define operating expenses as a percentage of revenue.Railways hope to generate revenues of order of Rs.1,84,820 cr next year, 10.1% higher than revised target of current year.By 2020, eliminiate all unmanned level crossing.New freight corridors announced: Delhi-Chennai, Kharagpur-Mumbai, Kharagpur-Vijayawada.North-East India, especially Mizoram and Manipur, to be connected through broad gauge soon.commission 2,800 km of new tracks in next year.We have received in-principle approval from 17 States to form joint ventures.Swacch Bharat: 17,000 bio-toilets and additional toilets to be provided by end of this Fiscal Year.1,600 km of electrification this year and 2,000 km proposed for the next year.Setting up 2 locomotive factories. New factories to be set up with an order book of Rs. 40,000 crore.LIC has agreed invest Rs. 1.5 lakh crore over 5 years on extremely favourable terms.To commission broad gauge lines at the rate of 7 km per day against 4.5 km over last five years.Wi-Fi at 100 railway stations this year and 400 next year.Increase in seat quota this year; 50% up for senior citizens.Introduced 1,780 ticket-vending machines.Enhanced capacity of e-ticketing system from 2000 tickets/min to 7,200/min.Railways to increase the quota of lower berths for women and senior citizens.CCTV network has been provided at 311 railway stations.A full-fledged Railway University soon.Introduce Deen Dayal coaches for long distance trains for unreserved passengers.Fully unreserved superfast trains to be introduced on dense traffic routes.Long distance superfast train Antyodaya Express for unreserved passsengers.opened long awaited Broad Gauge Lumding-Silchar section in Assam, connecting Barak Valley with rest of country.Overnight double-decker trains to be introduced on business travel routes.Plan to introduce bar-coded tickets on pilot basis to tackle menace of ticketless travel.Open cancellation facility through 139 helpline number.e-ticket facility for foreign debit and credit card holders.IRCTC will begin to manage catering service in phased manner.Introduced Sarthi Seva in Konkan Railways for help to senior citizens; will expand this service.All new Railway stations to be built as per Accessible India guidelines.Railway have also revamped our internal audit system with view to bringing in efficiency in working practices.Railway’ll install GPS-based digital display in coaches for showing upcoming stations.Elevated rail corridors from Churchgate to Virar and CST to Panvel.Railway intend to publish Rail Bandhu magazine in all regional languages.Two dedicated freight corridors by 2019.Railway will set aside Rs. 50 crore for providing innovation grants to start-ups.Drones to be used for remote monitoring of ongoing projects.33% sub-quota for women under all reserved categories.Railway’ll increase the advertising revenue by more than four times this year.Railway intend to give special focus to exploring advertising potentials at big stations.In-principal nod for MUTP projects received.India’s first rail auto hub to come up in Chennai.Special purpose vehicle for the Ahmedabad-Mumbai high speech corridor registered this month.A full-fledged market study on freight basket underway for revival of freight share.Railway will partner with the Govt. of TN for developing suburban network in Chennai through innovative financing methods.Railway will work with Karnataka State Government for suburban rails.Ring Railway to be redeveloped in partnership with the Delhi government.Railway Minister invited FM radio stations to provide train borne entertainment via PA systems.last year Railway had launched a coastal connectivity program. Tuna Port was commissioned this year and rail connectivity projects to ports of Jaigarh, Dighi, Rewas and Paradip are under implementation.