By IANS,
New Delhi : Seeking to rebut criticism, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee Friday asserted that she was being attacked for her absence from Delhi only due to “political reasons” and that there has been a steady decline in the number of train accidents over the last ten years.
She was replying to a debate before passage of the Railways (Appropriation) No. 4 Bill, 2010, along with the ministry’s demand for supplementary grants in the Rajya Sabha.
The bill allowing the ministry to withdraw budgetary allocation from the Consolidated Fund of India was passed by the Rajya Sabha with a voice vote.
Reeling out figures of train accidents since 2000, Banerjee said the numbers have steadily declined in the last ten years or so.
It has come down to 162 in 2009-10 and 177 in 2009-09 from a high of 463 accidents in 1999-2000, she said.
There were 473 train accidents in 2000-01, 415 in 2001-02, 351 in 2002-03, 325 in 2003-04, 234 each in 2004-05 and 2005-06, and it subsequently came down to 195 and 194 in 2006-07 and 2007-08 respectively.
She also pointed out that there is no direct relationship between the number of casualties and accidents, adding that the deaths this year shot up merely because of two accidents, including the May 28 Gyaneshwari Express derailment, which alone claimed 148 lives.
She contended that the Gyaneshwari Express tragedy was not caused by the railways’ failure but because of sabotage, adding that maintaining law and order is a state government’s responsibility.
And the ministry cannot be blamed for a state government’s failure, Banerjee added.
Answering questions on the over 172,000 vacancies in the railways, including more than 89,000 safety-category posts, Banerjee asserted that the vacancies did not arise overnight but had accumulated over many years and she cannot be blamed for it.