Railway Budget: Highlights

These are the highlights of theRailway Budget presented by Nitish Kumar in Parliament on Wednesday:Basic fares on Jana Shatabdi reducedFood made optional in Rajdhani,ShatabdiReduction in freight rates of petroproductsUniform classification for allcommoditiesGross traffic receipts higher thanestimatesRailways to carry 540 mt more in 2003-04Provision of Rs2,630 cr for plan expenditureExtension of run of 24 trainsFrequencyof 13 popular trains to be increasedSops for scribes in Rajdhani, ShatabdiExpressImprovement in pay scale of Railway staffIRCTC likely to payRs 3.5 cr dividendRailways proposes introduction of 50 newtrainsRailway plan fixed at over Rs 10,600 croreRailways to complete225 kms of 9 new lines Senior citizen concession for all over 60yrsGoods trains on new routes to be introducedPvt sector to helpimprove cleanlinessSafety surcharge fell short of target by Rs 95crFocus on safety, security, and punctuality20,000 vacancies inGroup D to be filledMonitoring mechanism to be streamlined 1,500stations to be linked by optical fibre Rs 730 cr sanctioned for newprojects 375 km rail track to be electrified 775 railway bridges tobe repaired RRB to set Group ''D'' question papers in regional languagestoo New types of coaches to minimise accidents Cancer, heartpatients to get 75 per cent concession in upper class fares New railwayzones to be operational from April 1 New parcel trains to be introducedRs 500 cr sanctioned for strengthening railway network inJammu-Udhampur-Srinagar sector Railways NTPC join hands for captive powerstation 1,750 km new railway routes to be announced RRB to recruit3,500 constables Latest gadgets to stop accidents being installedRailway Protection Force to be strengthened