HIGH LIGHTS OF RAILWAYS BUDGET 2009

PM says Mamata has done a commendable job

No increase in freight rates
No increase in passenger fares
Tatkal charges go down to Rs 100, booking time reduced from 5
days to 2 days
Unreserved ticketing systems to be expanded from 5,000 to 8,000
terminals
Janta khana (peoples' food) to be provided in railway stations
Develop 50 stations with world class amenities
12 new non-stop point to point trains introduced
ATMs on 200 mid and small sized stations
Aim for 1300 km gauge conversion by 2010
AC double decker trains for inter-city travel
Railway Finance Corp to borrow Rs 9000 crore in FY 2010
Madrasa students included in concession scheme
To set-up North Eastern development funds
Ladies special trains to be introduced in Kolkata, Chennai and Delhi
Kolkata Metro to be expanded
Increased Budgetary support by Rs 5000 crores
AC 'Yuva' trains at Rs 299 and Rs 399 to be introduced
Press correspondents to get 50% concession
To launch 57 new trains
Non-stop AC 'Turant' trains to connect major metros
Rs 25 ticket for those with monthly salary under Rs 1500 under the
'Izzat scheme'
Ladies special trains during peak hours
A new scheme called 'Izzat' to be introduced
To use Railway Land Bank for industrial development
To set up a new coach factory in Kanchrapara
Computerised tickets from post offices
3000 more unreserved ticketing terminals
At least one doctor on long distance train
Railways to set up cold storage cargoes
Mega logistics hubs in Eastern and Western corridor
Launch of premium faster parcel services in three routes
Aim to fulfill SC/ST backlog in jobs
18,000 wagons to be acquired by FY 2010
Railway hospitals to be upgraded
Commando battalion to be raised for security purposes
Integrated security schemes for 130 vulnerable stations
Railway recruitment board to be reviewed shortly
7 nursing colleges to be set up on railway land
Environmental friendly toilets on trains
49 stations of religious importance to be upgraded
Automatic vending machines to be set up at stations
 Women commandoes to employed for the security of women
passengers
High-capacity double decker AC coaches on the cards
Automatic vending vans to be set up to make ticketing easy
Computerised ticketing from post offices
SMS update on waitlisted tickets
Tickets can be bought from Post Offices
Automatic train information systems on major cities
Specially designed coaches, escalators and elevators for the
physically challenged
Depute doctors on long distance trains
Book stores, PCOs to be set up across stations
Infotainment services on Rajhandi and Shatabdi trains
To take the Private-Public partnership route to develop stations
Priority for food and water on trains
Developing multi-functional complexes at stations
Priority to passenger amenities
Rail projects shouldn't be gauged by economic viability but
governed by social viability: Mamata
To set up panel for financing unvaiilable rail projects
Improvement of trains amenities
Railways is trying to keep up with change
Committed to the cause of the underpreviliged.
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee begins her speech in Parliament.
Shares of engineering and wagon manufacturing firms surged by up
to 4 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange in early trade today
ahead of the Railway Budget 2009-10
Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML) gained 2.15 per cent at Rs 1,105,
Hind Rectifiers, the manufacturer of rectifier equipment and semi-
conductor devices, rose by 5.27 per cent to Rs 64.95
Budget is of the people, by the people and for the people: Mamata
Banerjee
More trains for West Bengal
Budget hotels at railway stations
More Garib Rath trains to be introduced
Measures to improve catering and on-board decoration
Special announcement for security on railways
Mamata is expected to announce 25 new trains
Amid expectations of improvement in railway amenities and food
served in trains, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee would present a
'pro-people' budget in Parliament
Business leaders and commoners in West Bengal are expecting a
series of sops for the state when she presents her budget in parliament
In her two budgets earlier, Banerjee introduced a new biweekly New
Delhi-Kolkata Rajdhani Express, besides starting several express trains
connecting various portions of West Bengal
 She might also announce changes in the Tatkal scheme to make it
more passenger friendly
Among the legacies of conflict that Railway Minister Mamata
Banerjee has inherited from her predecessor Lalu Prasad is the much-
hyped budget hotels scheme - involving the construction of 100 hotels
on vacant railway land in the public-private partnership mode
Mumbai, which accounts for more than 50 per cent of country's train
passengers, expects three of its major projects to be approved in the
railway budget
Mamata's predecessor Lalu Prasad Yadav had promised to introduce
GO Mumbai card on Central and Western Railway and on BEST