By IANS,
New Delhi : Following are the highlights of the interim rail budget for next fiscal presented by Railway Minister Lalu Prasad in Lok Sabha Friday:
* Two percent reduction in fares for virtually all classes
* Feasibility studies progressing well to start ‘bullet trains’ in India
* Plan outlay for 2009-10 kept at Rs.379.05 billion (Rs.37,905 crore)
* Railways will create record surplus of Rs.900 billion (Rs.90,000 crore) this fiscal
* Rs.700 billion (Rs.70,000 crore) surplus ploughed back to improve efficiency
* In past five years, no burden imposed on train passengers
* Railways saw 14 percent rise in passenger income
* Railways managed 8 percent growth in freight loading in five years
* But freight down in current year due to economic downturn
* Revised freight earnings for this fiscal to Rs.542.93 billion (Rs.54,293 crore)
* Freight loading target retained at 850 million tonnes
* Estimated freight earnings for next fiscal pegged at Rs.590.59 billion (Rs.59,059 crore)
* Drop in train accidents, railway safety enhanced
* Rs.367.73 billion (Rs.36,773 crore) spent this fiscal toward productivity, passenger facilities
* Railways to introduce wagons with higher capacity
* Railways to spend Rs.230 billion (Rs.23,000 crore) in 2009-10
* Work has started on Delhi-Mumbai dedicated freight corridor
* Dedicated freight corridor from Ludhiana to Kolkata to be inaugurated later this month
* Kolkata Metro will be expanded
* 43 new train services to be started in 2009-10
* Frequencies of 14 trains enhanced
* Frequencies of several trains across the country increased to daily service
* Extension of 14 trains envisaged
* Passenger volume likely to grow by around 7 percent over previous year
* Steps to have railway connectivity to Kashmir initiated
* Railways have set up four call centres