Modi's vision of bringing governance to the people's fingertips, his pet programs like Swachh Bharat, Digital India, Make In India, Skill India, his focus on improving ease of doing business and even his penchant for promoting Yoga — all found place in Prabhu's maiden Rail Budget. The Prime Minister, on his part, described the Budget as 'a watershed' moment in the Railways' history for seeking to move beyond the traditional approach of announcing new trains and coaches towards setting a comprehensive reform agenda.
Rail Budget 2015: Find all stories here
Passenger-friendly measures in Suresh Prabhu's rail budget 2015
"It is a forward looking, futuristic and passenger centric budget, combining a clear vision and a definite plan to achieve it. It stands out for its focus on the common man, putting speed, scale, service and safety, all on one track," Modi said after the Budget. Before commending the Budget to the Lok Sabha, Prabhu said, "We can, and will, turn the Railways around. We will fulfill the Prime Minister's vision for the Railways." Here are some of the Modi pet ideas that found their way in Prabhu's Budget.
READ ALSO: Suresh Prabhu speaks to TOI
MODI-FIED PRIORITIES
In line with the PM's vision of bringing public services to the fingertips of the people through technology, the rail minister said people can buy unreserved tickets on their smartphones. For those without smartphones, he announced a new "Operation 5 minutes" to expedite ticket purchases at stations. Multi-lingual ticketing portal, coin and debit card-operated ticket vending machines are also on the anvil Prabhu announced a Swachh Rail Swachh Bharat program to be steered by a new department that will seek professional help in the endeavour.
Under the Digital India plank, Prabhu announced SMS alerts on train status, Wi-Fi services at more stations, a new centrally-run display system for critical information and a paperless materials management platform that will also improve the ease of doing business for the multiple vendors and suppliers to the Railways.
For Make In India, Prabhu flagged new 'big ticket' ideas in railways manufacturing such as high horse power, green tech locomotives, commodity specific wagons like auto carriers, signaling systems and train protection systems and machines for laying and maintaining tracks.
To enable Skill India, the Railways has offered its training infrastructure and stations to facilitate skill development for the youth. A new speedier redevelopment policy is in the works for railway stations, where the prime minister is keen to rope in global lenders like Asian Development Bank to build world class stations. The push for green energy also figured prominently in the Budget, with Prabhu promising work on converting waste to energy, 1,000 Mw solar plants with private partners, the use of energy efficient LED lamps and a detailed energy audit to identify potential savings.
CROWDSOURCING
Taking a cue from the mygov.in portal for ideas and volunteers set up by the PMO, the Railways also turned to the social media for brainstorming. "Over 20,000 suggestions were received and we have already started working on the feasible ones. You may also find some incorporated in this budget," Prabhu said.
CO-OPERATIVE FEDERALISM
By promising to involve state governments more pro-actively in the planning and execution of railway projects, Prabhu took forward the Team India approach of the PM where the Centre works in an equal partnership with states. States will also be able to raise funds for specific rail connectivity projects through special purpose vehicles as well as equity partnerships with the Centre. This approach is already being used to fast-track four critical projects in Odisha, Chhatisgarh and Jharkhand that can help evacuate over 250 million tonnes of coal annually from the hinterland.
YOGA
Apart from imparting soft skills to the Railways' 1.3 million workforce, Prabhu also promised to train them in Yoga — which the PM has made a part of the global action plan against climate change, even getting the United Nations to declare an International Yoga Day.
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