Mamata's mantra for railways' growth: PPP

Partial cut in fare and freight, slew of concessions in her budget

GN Bureau | February 24, 2010


TV grab of Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee presenting her budget
TV grab of Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee presenting her budget

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee set the tone for her budget declaring that she preferred social responsibility to economic viability, amidst expectation of goodies for West Bengal. She said her government stood for inclusive growth.

She appealed to the business houses to join hands in rebuilding the railway and announced to set up a special task force to clear investment proposals within 100 days. But she made it clear the railways would not be privatised.

A slew of concessions, including for carriage of foodgrains, kerosene and fertiliser, were announced by Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee in her budget 2010-11 today.

There would be a reduction of Rs 100 per wagon in freight charges for carrying fertiliser, foodgrains for domestic consumption and kerosene, she said presenting the railway budget in the Lok Sabha.

The technicians of the regional film industry would get 75 per cent concession in second class sleeper and 50 per cent in higher classes in all trains while travelling for film production-related work.

Cancer patients travelling for treatment would get 100 per cent concession in third AC and sleeper classes.

Service charges on e-tickets will be reduced to Rs 10 for sleeper class and Rs 20 for AC classes, she said. The present charges are Rs 15 and Rs 40, respectively.

Comments

 

Other News

Income Tax dept holds Ghatkopar Outreach on new IT Act

The Income Tax Department organised an outreach programme in Ghatkopar, Mumbai, to raise awareness about the key features of the Income Tax Act, 2025, effective April 1, 2026. The initiative is part of a nationwide effort to promote taxpayer awareness, simplify compliance, and strengthen a transparent, eff

Making AI work where governance is closest to people

India’s next governance leap may not solely come from digitisation. It will come from making public systems more intelligent, more adaptive, and more responsive to the dynamics at the grassroots. That opportunity is especially significant at the panchayat level, where governance is not an abstract po

Borrowing troubles: How small loans are quietly trapping youth

A silent crisis is playing out in the pocket of young India, not in stock markets or government treasuries, but in smartphones of college students and first-jobbers who clicked on the Apply Now button without reading the small print.  A decade ago, to take a loan, you had to do some paperwor

A 19th-century pilgrim’s progress

The Travels of a Sadhu in the Himalayas By Jaladhar Sen (Translated by Somdatta Mandal) Speaking Tiger Books, 259 pages, ₹499.00  

India faces critical shortage of skin donors amid rising burn cases

India reports nearly 70 lakh burn injury cases every year, resulting in approximately 1.4 lakh deaths annually. Experts estimate that up to 50% of these lives could be saved with adequate access to skin donations.   A significant concern is that around 70% of burn victims fall wi

Not just politics, let`s discuss policies too

Why public policy matters Most days, India`s loudest debates stop at the ballot box. We can name every major leader and recall every campaign slogan. Still, far fewer of us can explain why a widow`s pension is delayed or how a government school`s budget is actually approved. That


Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter