Railway Budget 2012-2013

75 New express trains will be introduced this year including 21 new passengers services, 9 DEMU and 8 MEMU services.
75 new local trains for Mumbai, 44 new local trains for Kolkata and 18 new local trains for Chennai is introduced.
39 trains will be extended and frequency of 23 trains will be increased.
Project to connect Nepal via rail route will be taken up in Railway Budget 2012-13.
Project to connect Agartala with Akhaura in Bangladesh to be taken up in Railway Budget 2012-13.
Wagon factory to be setup at Sitapali in Ganjham district of Odhisa.
Rail Coach Factory to be set up at Palakkad with the support of Kerala Government.
A plant for manufacture of fraction alternators to be setup at Vidisha in MP.
All the meter gauge, narrow gauge sections to be made broad gauge by the end of 12th Plan.
6,500 km of railway track to be electrified in next 5 years.
For the year 2012-13 Rs 60,100 crore railway budget is proposed.
Plan to modernize 19000 km of railway track, which cater to 80% of traffic.
Logistics Corporation to be created to provide logistics solutions for rail user.
Proposal to increase number of double stack container trains.

Major New Trains in Railway Budget 2012-13:
Below are some of the new major trains for this Railway Budget:

Howrah-New Jalpaiguri Shatabdi Express (6 days)
Habibganz (Bhopal)-Indore AC Double Decker Express (Daily)
Kota-Hanumangarh Express (Daily)
Dwarka-Somnath Express (Daily)
Ahemadabad-Ajmer Intercity Express (Daily)
Jabalpur-Sigrauli Intercity Express (Daily)
Barbul-Chakaradhapur Intercity Express (Daily)
Kanpur-Allahabad Intercity Express (Daily)
Chappra-Lucknow Express (Tri-Weekly)
Ranchi-Dumka Intercity Express (Daily)
Firozpur-Sriganganagar Express (Daily)
Bhuvaneshwar-Bhawanipatna Express (Daily)
Jhansi-Mumbai Express (Weekly)
Gandhidham-Bandra (T) Express (Weekly)
Asansol-Chennai Express (Weekly)
Secunderabad-Shalimar AC Express (Weekly)

Common Man Facilities in New Rail Budget 2012-13

SMS on passenger mobile phone to be accepted as proof of valid reservation.
Meals during travel can now be booked through mobile SMS.
25,00 coaches will be equipped with green toilets under Pilot Project
321 escalators will be installed at important railway stations of the country.
50% discount in AC and AC-chair car will be given to the patient of anemia and sickle-cell disease.
Every Garib Ratha train will now be equipped with a separate coach for physically challenged people.

Employment and Awards in Railway Budget 2012-13

Railway will hire over 1 lakh employees in 2012-13.
New hires can now fill up all vacancies in SC/ST and physically challenged categories.
Every year Rail Khel Ratna Award will be given to 10 sports-persons.
Railway workers will now get the bonus of 78 days.

Finance Minister Views on Railway Budget

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee describes this Railway Budget as positive. He also appreciates the proposal to bring down operating cost.

Rail Budget Highlights

RAIL BUDGET 2012-13

What is Rail Budget?
The Railway Budget deals with planned infrastructure expenditure on the railways as well as with the operating revenue and expenditure for the upcoming fiscal years. The Railway Budget is presented to the Parliament by the Union Railway Minister, two days prior to the Union Budget.

When Railway Budget 2012-13 will be presented?
The Railway Budget 2012-13 will be presented on 14th March 2012 by Union Minister Mr Dinesh Trivedi.

Expectations & Latest Developmentsof Railway Budget 2012-13
Below are the few rail budget highlights of Railway Budget 2012:

Passenger fares may be hiked to expand the world's second largest railroad network.
Railways Minister Dinesh Trivedi is preparing to kick-start the long-pending modernisation of Indian Railways.
The Rail Budget 2012-13 could lay an action plan for resource generation and increase thrust on PPP projects for capacity augmentation.
A legislation to make the Railway Protection Force (RPF) responsible for all railway related law and order issues, apart from passenger safety, will likely be tabled in March 2012 when the Budget will be discussed in Parliament.
Chief minister Tarun Gogoi is stressing on the need for good connectivity from the state and has urged the railway minister to declare the North East Frontier Railway a dedicated zone exclusively for the northeastern states and announce the same in the budget.
Gujarat MPs are demanding bullet train between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. They are requesting Mr. Trivedi to announce the bullet train project as a special project in the upcoming Railway Budget 2012-13.
The Mahratta Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture, Pune (MCCIA) has come up with proposals and suggestions for the Union Railway Budget 2012-13. The MCCIA has demanded setting up of new terminal for long distance trains and a separate terminus for Pune-Lonavla trains. MCCIA has also demanded new trains for Kolhapur, Surat, Shirdi, Chennai, Bangalore, Amravati, Jammu and Guwahati.

Railway Budget 2012-13 Updates and Rail Budget Highlights.