Budget 2017: No service charge for online railway tickets

Highlights: No new trains, Rs one lakh cr towards passengers' safety

GN Bureau | February 1, 2017


#Union Budget   #Budget 2017   #Arun Jaitley   #Narendra Modi   #Indian Railways   #Railways   #Suresh Prabhu  


Presenting the union budget 2017-18, finance minister Arun Jaitely announced 1.31 lakh crore for the capital and development expenditure of Indian Railways. A total of Rs 55,000 crore has been allocated for Railways in 2017-18 combined budget. Here’s everything you need to know:
 

  • A Rastriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh with corpus of Rs 1 lakh crore for a period of five years will be created to prevent rail accidents.
  • Indian Railways to bear remaining funds required for safety works from its own pocket.
  • A total of 3,500 km new tracks to be commissioned.
     
  • No service charge for buying tickets through IRCTC website.
  • Indian Railways to focus on four areas—safety, capital works, cleanliness and financial accountability.
  • A new metro-rail policy to create more jobs for youth.
     
  • By 2019, all coaches will be fitted with bio toilets to prevent corrosion of tracks and maintain cleanliness.
     
  • 17 new projects of construction and development.
     
  • 500 railway stations to be made accessible for differently abled.
  • A new single window service to be unveiled for all cleanliness related complaints.
     
  • Three sewage treatment plants (STPs) to be set up.
     
  •  Railways to focus more on tourism and pilgrimage.
     
  •  Tariffs to be fixed on the basis of cost.
     
  • IRCON, IRCTC will be listed on stock exchanges.

 
 

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