'When I talk to my colleagues in the Railways, they say 'aadmi toh bohot hai, lekin matlab ka aadmi ek bhi nahi hai (the Railways has a bloated workforce, but doesn't have employees with have the skillsets that matter)'.'
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said that India and Pakistan came closer to resolving the Kashmir issue during the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government. He added that he does not expect a return to that situation in his lifetime. Abdullah lauded Singh's efforts on Kashmir, including the setting up of working groups on the issue, and said he practically initiated measures for the return of displaced Kashmiri Pandits. The chief minister also praised Singh's contribution to India's economic development.
India's decrepit state-run train services stand to receive at least a 25 per cent boost in investment to over $9 billion.
Rail Budget caters to all sections of the society and showcases a vision to reorganise and rejuvenate the national transporter
'Indian families' needs and expectations have gone through a revolution across economic demographics.' 'As this latest Modi-Sitharaman Budget demonstrated, politicians have understood this change. They are responding to it,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
The idea is to get the budget passed by Parliament along with Appropriations Bill and the Finance Bill by the end of March as this would ensure implementation of the Budget proposals from April 1.
Per capita income has more than doubled to Rs 1.97 lakh in around nine years. Indian economy has increased in size from being 10th to 5th largest in the world in the past nine years. Seven priorities of the Budget, 'Saptarishi', are inclusive development, reaching the last mile, infrastructure and investment, unleashing the potential, green growth, youth power and financial sector.
Suresh Prabhu has announced a slew of measures to improve servcies in trains and railway stations
Anticipating healthier economic growth, the Railways has targeted a record Rs 1.6 lakh crore in revenue for the next financial year, while no increase has been proposed in passenger fares and freight rates.
The government's indirect tax collection is expected to increase by 8.3 pc in the financial year 2025-26 (FY26), according to a report by ICICI Bank. The report also noted that this growth is higher than the 7.1 per cent increase seen in FY25 and is mainly driven by rise in GST revenue from strong urban consumption. It said "The increase is driven by higher goods and services tax collections which in-turn is explained by boost to urban consumption".
When Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tables her Budget on February 1, the numbers could be something to cheer.
Post-election capital expenditure (capex) has been weak at 2 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in M9FY25. The FY25 revised estimates (RE) indicate 7 per cent growth in FY25 against FY24, implying 21 per cent Y-o-Y growth in Q4FY25 government capex.
The upcoming Akshay Kumar starrer Toilet: Ek Prem Katha is set to use toilets of the Indian Railways
Could it have been more reformist? Of course, but this is an election year Budget, observes Akash Prakash.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to present Union Budget on February 28.
There was a plan to increase the Railways' revenue by augmenting carrying capacity. This target has, however, become the source of a bitter battle between two ministries - the railways and steel - and provoked serious arguments over the "Make in India" programme.
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The introduction of fuel adjustment component in passenger fares will merely add Rs 450 crore.
Experts caution that the rally in these stocks may fizzle out soon, as the overall market sentiment still remains weak.
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee presented the Railway Budget on Friday. In her third Railway Budget speech, Banerjee said atleast one doctor will be available on long distance trains.
The Indian Railways will borrow Rs 15,000 crore (Rs 150 billion) from the market through its dedicated financing arm IRFC in the 2012-13 fiscal, Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi said on Wednesday.
'When people have money in their hands, they make their judgment about whether they want to spend it entirely or spend some out of it.'
"Call it a craze, fever or national interest but HSR is our window to the outside world."
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has slammed the Maha Kumbh as a "Mrityu Kumbh" (Death Kumbh), accusing the Uttar Pradesh government of suppressing the actual toll in the stampede that occurred at the religious gathering. Banerjee also criticized the lack of planning and management at the event, highlighting the plight of Bengal residents who died in the stampede. The BJP, however, has condemned Banerjee's remarks, calling her an "anti-Hindu chief minister" and accusing her of political opportunism.
Besides advancing the presentation of the Budget to perhaps the first week of January, , there are four new initiatives that could be rolled out from the next Budget, says A K Bhattacharya.
A look into Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee's Duronto trains.
LHB coaches are safer. Two high-level railway safety commissions came down heavily on ICF coaches, recommending their replacement by LHB, says Bibek Debroy.
The finance minister will also visit the school in Tamil Nadu where she studied from KG to Class 5.
Budget session will begin on February 23 and conclude on May 8
The Railway Minister has announced that there is an urgency to attract FDI in Railway projects.
'The most important expenditure in the Budget that indicates employment generation is infrastructure.'
This comes as IR posted its worst operating ratio (money spent to earn every Rs 100) in 16 years, at 96.9 in 2016-17.
In 2019-20, the capital expenditure of Indian Railways (IR) increased 60 per cent over 2016-17. The draft National Railways plan envisages a further increase in IR's capital expenditure, but an analysis by Business Standard shows that IR has come to depend more on borrowings and budgetary support. In 2016-17, while 11 per cent of its capital expenditure (capex) was funded by internal sources, in 2019-20 the ratio dropped to less than 1 per cent. A 2015 Committee on Restructuring Railways had flagged that over-reliance on borrowings could exacerbate the financial situation of Railways.
The Lower House of Parliament took up the Demands for Grants and Appropriation Bills after two adjournments as the ruling and Opposition MPs engaged in a matching duet over demands for an apology by Rahul Gandhi and the Adani issue.
'Kavach', which literally means armour, is being promoted by the railways as the world's cheapest automatic train collision protection system.
Fight the high season and ridiculous prices with these simple and easy travel hacks.
Attacking the government for a provision of a mere Rs 500 (Rs 5 billion).
'A government whose policies are focused around making the life of ordinary citizens, specially the most deprived sections, richer; a government that prioritises education, health and transport, that doesn't treat its citizens as subjects who must come to it for everything, is rare in our country.' 'When such a government is thrown out, one is left stunned,' notes Jyoti Punwani.
Nirmala Sitharaman's messaging was clear when she presented a well-balanced Budget with an eye on state elections in nine states followed by a general election next year, observes Ramesh Menon.
'If the markets correct further, PSU stocks could continue to decline.'
With Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget presentation lasting for about one hour 31 minutes on Tuesday, the finance minister's budget speech this year became the shortest ever since 2019.
