For the third successive year, the Railway Budget for 2011-12 spared the passengers of any increase in fares and proposed no hike in freight rates while introducing 56 new trains, including nine non-stop Duronto trains and three Shatabdis.

Presenting her third budget in UPA-II in the Lok Sabha, railway minister Mamata Banerjee announced a slew of concessions including reducing the eligibility age of senior women citizens from 60 to 58 years and the fare concession for men above 60 from 30 to 40 per cent.

Apparently with an eye on the coming assembly polls in West Bengal, where she is projected as the chief ministerial candidate of the Congress-Trinamool combine, she came out with a number of projects for the state, including a metro coach factory in Singur, Rail Industrial Park in Jelligham, an integrated suburban network for Kolkata and 34 new services for the Kolkata metro.

Her announcements for the state evoked protests from members including those from Bihar, UP and Kerala, but she appealed to them to be patient for her other announcements.

The minister also extended the concession for physically- challenged persons and Kirti and Shaurya Chakra awardees to travel in Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains, besides extending facility of card passes to parents of unmarried posthumous Paramvir Chakra and Ashok Chakra gallantry award winners.

She also proposed to induct 16,000 ex-servicemen in the railways by March.

The budget proposes the highest-ever plan outlay of Rs 57,630 crore for 2011-12. The gross budgetary support has been projected at Rs 20,000 crore, diesel cess at Rs 1,041 crore, internal resources at Rs 14,219 crore and market borrowing at Rs 20,954 crore.

The budget estimates for 2011-12 project a freight loading of 993 million tonnes and a passenger growth of 6.4 per cent.

Gross traffic receipts has been estimated at Rs 1,06,239 crore, exceeding the Rs one lakh crore mark for the first time, despite pressure on finances on account of the pay commission payout.

Ordinary working expenses have been assessed at Rs 73,650 crore and appropriation to depreciation reserve fund pegged at Rs 7,000 crore.

Provision of Rs 6,735 crore has been made for dividend payment and the excess for railways for the new fiscal has been projected at Rs 5,258 crore, with an operating ratio of 98.1 per cent.

In a bid to provide improved comfort and features and more exclusivity, the Rail budget proposes to introduce a new super AC class of travel.

Provision of internet access on the Howrah Rajdhani Express is being introduced as a pilot project.

A new portal for internet booking is being launched shortly and tickets booked through this would be cheaper with a charge of Rs 10 for AC classes and Rs 5 for others.

The budget provides for upgrading 236 more stations as 'Adarsh' (model). 47 additional suburban services in Mumbai and 50 new suburban services have been proposed for Kolkata.

Two new passenger terminals in Kerala and one each in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal have been proposed.

A feasibility study to raise the speed of passenger trains to 160-200 kms per hour is proposed to be undertaken.

As an incentive to states maintaining normal movement of trains, Banerjee announced a special package of two new trains and two projects.

As a measure of safety, railways have sanctioned deployment of anti-collision devices in eight zones while fog-safe device will be deployed on the basis of GPS.

All unmanned level crossing up to 3000 in number will be eliminated.

To promote tourism, special trains called 'Janambhoomi Gaurav' will be introduced on four routes while 10 'Rajya Rani' express trains connecting state capitals with important cities in respective states will be introduced.

13 new passenger services, 22 diesel electrical multiple units (DEMU), eight multiple electrical unit services are to be introduced while the run of 33 trains will be extended and the frequency of 17 trains will be increased.

A scheme for socially-desirable projects named 'Pradhan Mantri Rail Vikas Project' with a non-lapsable fund has been proposed.

10,000 shelter units have been proposed for track side dwellers in Mumbai, Sealdah, Siliguri and Tiruchirapalli on a pilot basis.

List of 56 new express trains to be introduced:

Raebareli-Jaunpur Express (daily)

Tirupati-Amravati Express (bi-weekly) via Akola, Nizamabad, Gooty, Dharmavaram

Asansol-Gorakhpur Express (weekly) via Chhapra, Siwan

Nagpur-Kolhapur Express (bi-weekly) via Kurduwadi, Lathur road, Purna, Akola

Malda Town-Digha Express (weekly) via Rampurhat

Pune-Nanded Express (weekly) via Latur

Visakhapatnam-Koraput Intercity Express (5 days a week) via Vizianagram

Howrah-Secunderabad Express (weekly) via Kharagpur

Mumbai-Chandigarh Express (weekly) via Phulera-Ringus-Gurgaon-Kurukshetra

Bardhaman-Rampurhat Express (tri-weekly)

Bikaner-Delhi Superfast Intercity (daily) via Ratangarh

Hyderabad-Darbhanga Express (weekly) via Muri-Jharsuguda-Nagpur

Howrah-Tirupati Express (weekly)

Narsapur-Nagarsol Express (bi-weekly) via Secunderabad, Nizamabad

Puri-Shalimar Express (weekly)

Ranchi-Pune Express (bi-weekly) via Bilaspur

Shalimar-Udaipur Express (weekly) via Katni, Kota

Chennai-Shirdi Express (weekly) via Bangalore

Coimbatore-Tuticorin Link Express (daily)

Howrah-Mysore Express (weekly) via Gondia, Adilabad

Yesvantpur-Mysore Express (daily)

Digha-Visakhapatnam Express (weekly)

Mysore-Chennai Express (weekly)

Ahmedabad-Yesvantpur AC Express (weekly) via Hubli, Bijapur.

Bhavnagar-Kochuvelli Express (weekly) via Panvel, Madgaon

Gorakhpur-Yesvantpur Express (weekly) via Faizabad, Kanpur, Bhopal Kacheguda

Bhuj-Dadar Express (bi-weekly)

Kolkata-Ajmer Express (weekly) via Asansol

Jabalpur-Indore Intercity Express (tri-weekly) via Guna, Bina

Porbander-Kochuveli Express (weekly) via Panvel, Madgaon

Kolkata-Agra Express (weekly) via Kasganj, Mathura

Lucknow-Bhopal Express (weekly)

Varanasi-Singrauli Intercity Express (daily)

Nagpur-Bhusawal Express (tri-weekly) via Itarsi-Khandwa

Puri-Gandhidham Express (weekly) via Durg

Howarh-Visakhapatnam Express (weekly)

Guwahati-Dimapur Express (daily)

Howrah-Darbhanga Express (weekly)

Vasco-Velankani Express (weekly)

Bilaspur-Ernakulam Superfast (weekly)

Digha-Puri Express (weekly)

Jodhpur-Delhi Express (bi-weekly) via Degana, Ratangarh

Kharagpur-Viluppuram Express (weekly) via Vellore

Udaipur-Bandra (T) Express (tri-weekly)via Ratlam

Purulia-Viluppuram Express (weekly) via Midnapore, Kharagpur, Vellore

Asansol-Gonda Express (weekly) via Chhapra, Mau, Shahganj, Ayodhya

Delhi-Puducherry Express (weekly)

Asansol-Tatanagar Express (tri-weekly) via Purulia

Indore-Kota Intercity Express (daily) via Ruthiyai

Bhagalpur-Ajmer Express (weekly)

Howrah-Jaisalmer Express (weekly) via Rae Bareli, Ratangarh, Lalgarh

Ernakulam-Bangalore Express (weekly)

Mangalore-Palghat Intercity Express (daily)

Varanasi-Ahmedabad Express (weekly) via Ajmer

Howrah-Nanded Express (weekly)

Hardwar-Ramnagar Link Express (tri-weekly)