'We carry 6.5 billion passengers every year. We have crossed seven billion this year, and are targeting 10 billion by 2030.'
During independence, Indian Railway's system was ahead of China's. However, in 1990s the ambitious neighbour started its rail reforms and left India far behind. The Chinese rail transformation story has many lessons for India.
In the wake of a series of Maoist attacks on trains and rail infrastructure, the railway ministry is likely to seek deployment of paramilitary forces like the Central Reserve Police Force to guard its tracks and property in the Naxal-hit areas.
Aiming at reduction of carbon emission by using clean energy, Indian Railways has embarked upon a renewable energy action plan as part of the national policy to address the impact of climate change.
The government is looking to give Bharat Global Ports a certain amount of domestic exposure after it set up the state-owned consortium to increase India's global maritime heft, officials aware of the development said. The intended domestic exposure is meant to give the consortium experience and build its credentials for international projects.
The finances of the Railways are in dire need of repair.
Addressing a press conference in the national capital, Jaya Varma Sinha, member of operation and business development, Railway Board said, "According to the preliminary findings, there has been some issue with the signalling. We are still waiting for the detailed report from the Commissioner of Railway Safety. Only Coromandel Express met with an accident. The train was at a speed of around 128 km/h."
On Monday, Railway Board, the apex body in the ministry, issued a circular that the Prime Minister's Office would handle all projects worth Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion) and above.
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, a key accused in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, was brought to India on Thursday after being "successfully extradited " from the US, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said. The 64-year-old Canadian citizen of Pakistani origin landed in Delhi in a special plane on Thursday evening, ending days of speculation of when and how he will be extradited, officials said. The NIA said in a statement that it had secured the successful extradition after years of sustained and concerted efforts to bring to justice the key conspirator behind the 2008 mayhem that claimed 166 lives. Rana is accused of conspiring with David Coleman Headley alias Daood Gilani, and operatives of designated terrorist organisations Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Harkat-ul-Jihadi Islami (HUJI) along with other Pakistan-based co-conspirators, to carry out the the three-day terror siege of India's financial capital.
Railway officials also indicated that possible 'sabotage' and tampering with the electronic interlocking system, which detects the presence of trains, led to the Friday accident.
If the fiscal deficit target of 4.9% of GDP has to be met for 2024-2025, which the government must in view of the uncertainties and challenges emerging both domestically and globally, the finance ministry may see in the composition of the current year's capex a sliver of hope, notes A K Bhattacharya.
From highways connecting once-remote regions to aviation networks carrying millions, India's infrastructure story is one of transformation.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Wednesday approved seven multi-tracking projects of Indian Railways at an estimated cost of around Rs 32,500 crore, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said. The proposed projects, which will be fully funded by the Centre, will help increase the existing line capacity, smoothen train operations, reduce congestion and facilitate ease of travelling and transportation. The projects covering 35 districts in nine states -- Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Odisha, Jharkhand and West Bengal -- will increase the existing network of Indian Railways by 2,339 km and provide employment of an estimated 7.06 crore man-days to the people of the states.
'When we finally immersed ourselves in the sacred waters, remembering Ganga Maa and Lord Mahadev, we felt a profound sense of accomplishment,' says Satish V.
rediffGURU Rohit Gupta, co-founder and COO of College Vidya, provides a list of competitive exams that can help you land a job in the public sector.
The year 2015 has seen eight accidents because of derailments.
The Cabinet can take a decision on the matter only after the Election Commission's approval.
Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee presented the Railway Budget for 2009-10 in Parliament on Friday.
As Indian Railways looks to avert the crisis like last summer, preparations are under way to stock up coal at thermal power plants. Much like February and March, thermal coal movement in April was 5 per cent higher than the previous year, data from the Ministry of Railways shows. While India prepares for a hot summer this year, 48.23 million tonnes (mt) of coal for thermal power plants was ferried by Indian Railways in April. The national transporter also moved about 500,000 tonnes--18.4 per cent-- more imported coal for power plants this April than it had done last year.
IRCTC used to charge Rs 40 per ticket for bookings in AC classes, Rs 20 per ticket in sleeper class
'Imagine what will happen when a train running at 128 kmph moves onto a track that is meant to have only a speed less than 30 kmph!' 'Naturally, it will derail, and the coaches will go for a tailspin.'
The Odisha government has constituted a fact-finding committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of a Nepali student at KIIT University and the subsequent protests by students. The three-member panel will investigate the institute's handling of the situation, including the suspension of students seeking justice. The incident has sparked outrage and raised concerns about the safety of international students at the institute. The Nepal government has threatened to stop issuing no objection certificates for students studying in Odisha if the situation is not resolved.
The Railway ministry has been allocated budgetary support of Rs 140367.13 crore in the Union Budget on Tuesday - Rs 20,311 crore more than the revised figures of the previous fiscal. Overall, the national transporter is set to get a capital expenditure (CapEx) push of Rs 2.45 lakh crore in the financial year 2022-23, 14 per cent higher than the budgeted capital expenditure of Rs 2.15 lakh crore for the current financial year. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget speech for 2022-23 said that India will manufacture 400 new, energy-efficient Vande Bharat trains in the next three years.
A maximum of over 2,200 infections were reported by the South Central Railway, followed by 1,323 cases in the Central Railway, 1,307 in the Northern Railway, 1,145 in the Southern Railway and 1,013 cases in the East Central Railway.
Amid allegations that Railway Board Member Mahesh Kumar had offered bribe to get the plum posting as Member (Electrical), Railway Ministry on Saturday said no "relevant" Board level job is vacant at present and denied any wrongdoing in his present appointment as Member (Staff).
The Railways has decided to install nearly 900 automatic ticket vending machines at stations across the country for the convenience of daily commuters and reduce queues at counters during rush hours.
In a major move to push tourism in the hill states and counter Chinese expansion in the Tibetan region, the Railways ministry has prepared a blueprint to set up an ambitious 480 kilometre Manali - Leh railway line link criss-crossing the treacherous mountains in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.
More than 4,300 employees of the Railways have come under the scanner of its own vigilance department for their alleged involvement in corrupt practices.
The total earnings of Railways during April to November this year were Rs 78,868.17 crore compared to Rs 66,150.48 crore during the same period last year, registering an increase of 19.23 per cent.
Getting into the groove, Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal on Tuesday got a detailed presentation of the functioning and various aspects of the national transporter including its financial health.
Railways on Wednesday ordered an inquiry into the train accident at Sitheri in Tamil Nadu, which has left ten persons dead.
Railways has pledged Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion) for the Games and a memorandum of understanding is expected to be signed between the public sector unit behemoth and the organising committee shortly.
An effort is on to change the fortunes of the country's largest transport network. But it's a long journey ahead.
Congress, which is an ally of the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, on Monday questioned the recurrence of train accidents and said the railway ministry was not safe in the hands of state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party.
It was a tumultuous year for the railways as a cash-strapped ministry saw four ministers in quick succession, resulting in indecision and delay in policy making process.
The total earnings during April-August this year were Rs 48,635.19 crore (Rs 486.35 billion) as against the target of Rs 49,994.28 crore (Rs 499.94 billion), falling short of Rs 1359.09 crore (Rs 13.59 billion), according Railway Ministry data.
The railways has initiated a high-level probe into the train crash in Odisha to be headed by the commissioner of railway safety, South Eastern Circle.
On this day 167 years ago, the wheels of the first passenger train in the country from Mumbai to Thane started rolling.
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