New Delhi : Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu Thursday announced a slew of passenger facilities in his maiden budget including user-friendly ladders to mount upper berths to increasing lower-berth quota for senior citizens.
The other amenities are:
** Unreserved ticket purchase made simpler through smart phones, debit cards
** Introduction of ‘Operation Five Minutes’ to ensure that a passenger travelling unreserved can purchase a ticket within five minutes
** Introduction of 17,000 bio-toilets in trains
** Surveillance cameras on select mainline and ladies compartments
** All India 24 X 7 helpline 138 from March 1; Toll free No.182 – for security complaints
** All newly-manufactured coaches to be braille-enabled
** Online booking for wheel chairs to be enabled
** Wi-Fi facility to be extended to category B stations
** SMS alerts to be introduced to inform passengers in advance about the updated arrival/ departure time of trains at starting or destination stations
** New department to keep stations clean
** Toilets at stations need improvement; 650 additional toilets to be created in addition to 120 last year
** Rs.120 crore provided for lifts and escalators to facilitate movement of passengers and goods
** Collaboration with NIFT and NID for better bed rolls, inner coach designs
** For the benefit of the soldiers, a Defence Travel System has been developed for elimination of warrants to make travel easier. This facility has been commissioned in 600 locations.
**To expand water vending machines to most railway stations to ensure availability of clean drinking water at very low cost to people
**The facility of self-operated lockers would also gradually be made available at stations
**TTEs would be instructed to help senior citizens, pregnant women and differently-abled people in obtaining lower berths
**Middle bay of coaches will be reserved for women and senior citizens for reasons of safety