The Finance Minister states that the proposed measures will result in increased safety and higher travel speeds for passengers (Budget 2024).
In the interim Budget announced on Thursday, three railway corridor programs were introduced, focusing on energy, mineral, and cement transportation, port connectivity, and areas with high traffic density.
These initiatives aim to “accelerate” economic growth by enhancing the development of the national transportation system (Budget 2024). The projects fall under the PM Gati Shakti program, facilitating multi-modal connectivity.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Budget speech, highlighted that these proposals will enhance logistics and decrease costs.
“The resulting alleviation of congestion in high-traffic corridors will enhance the efficiency of passenger train operations, leading to increased safety and higher travel speeds for passengers (Budget 2024).
Alongside dedicated freight corridors, these three economic corridor programs are expected to expedite GDP growth and decrease logistic costs,” stated Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
In anticipation of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections later this year, Finance Minister Sitharaman’s comments address two significant concerns regarding Indian Railways in 2023: safety and punctuality.
These concerns arose following train accidents, notably the tragic incident in Balasore, Odisha on June 2, 2023, where three trains collided, resulting in 300 casualties.
The railway network’s congestion also led to overcrowding at stations, causing inconvenience for travelers during the festive season in November.
Sitharaman announced plans to upgrade 40,000 regular bogies to the standards of Vande Bharat trains, aiming to improve safety, convenience, and comfort.
In 2022, the Railways set an ambitious goal to expand rail infrastructure and network by the Financial Year 2027-28 (FY28) to achieve a freight loading capacity of 3000 million tonnes (MT) by FY30, Mission 3000 MT.
This mission involves prioritizing over 1200 works to be completed within five years, with a projected capital expenditure of Rs 8.45 trillion, currently at various execution stages.
In the financial year 2022-23, the Railways recorded a substantial increase in freight loading, reaching 1512 million tonnes (MT) compared to 1418 MT in the fiscal year 2021-22, marking a notable 6.63% growth (Budget 2024).
This represents the highest-ever loading for the transporter in a financial year. Furthermore, for the cumulative period of April-November 2023 in FY24, the Railways accomplished a freight loading of 1015.67 MT, surpassing the previous year’s loading of 978.72 MT.
