By IANS,
New Delhi : More highlights from Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee’s budget presented in the Lok Sabha Friday:
* No increase in fares.
* Age for senior citizen’s concession reduced to 58 from 60.
* Central Organistaion for Project Implemtaiton created; will create accountability for non-performance.
* Rail linkage to Gujarat from Delhi-Mumbai freight corridor.
* Earnings for 2010-11 set to exceed Rs.1 lakh crore.
* Integrated suburban network to be set up in Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad and other cities; suburban system of Hyderabad to be strengthened.
* Concession for physically handicapped and gallantry award winners for travel in Rajdhani and Shatabdi expresses.
* 50 percent concession for mediapersons with families to be increased from once to twice a year.
* Mumbai suburban system’s EMU coaches to be increased from nine to 12.
* Multi-purpose smart card to be introduced for all-India travel.
* New Durantos to be run on Allahabad-Mumbai, Pune-Ahmedabad, Sealdah-Puri, Secunderabad-Visakhapatnam, Madurai-Chennai routes.
* Working expenditure during 2011-12 estimated at Rs.87,000 crore
* Passing through a difficult phase; 97 percent increase in expenditure due to implementation of Sixth Pay Commission report.
* Loss of Rs.3,500 crore in 2010-11.
* Ten-year backlog of 1.75 lakh jobs being addressed; 16,000 ex-servicemen to be given jobs in railways.
* Airport-like trolleys to be provided at more stations.
* Railways to set up a sports cadre.
* Train to run to Bangladesh to showcase Indian culture.
* Upgraded class of air conditioned travel to be introduced shortly.
* Anti-collision device, successful in North West Frontier Railway, to be extended to three more zonal railways.
* Railways always been a soft target but law and order a state subject. If railways are blocked in one region, this has a snowballing effect in other parts of the country.
* Will add 180 km of rail lines in 2011-12.
* All-India security helpline set up.
* To adopt modern technology through centres of academic excellence.
* Work started on two dedicated freight corridors.
* Work on upgrading 442 stations to be completed by March 31.
* Safety first priority; accident rate has come down.
* Decision to start pilot projects to give shelter to homeless people.
* Outlay of Rs.57,630 crore for 2011-12, the highest investment in one year.
* Rs.10,000 crore to be raised through railway bonds.
* Pradhan Mantri Rail Vikas Yojna to be launched.
* Industrial park to be set up in Nandigram, West Bengal.
* Fund to be created for socially desirable projects.
* First coach from Rae Bareli factory in next three months.
* Work on wagon factory in Orissa to begin after land is acquired.
* Railways to set up factory in Jammu and Kashmir.
* To set up Metro coach factory at Singur, West Bengal.
* Manipur to be soon connected to railway network.
* Centre for excellence in software to be set up at Darjeeling.
* Combines strong economic focus along with inclusion.
* Develop business-oriented policies to aid industry.
* Happy to announce 85 PPP proposals received; set up single-window system to take these forward.
* Decided to set-up rail-based industries.