Dear Friend,
It gives me immense pleasure to write to you in this festive season. I wish you and your family a very Happy Diwali and Chhath Puja!
We at Indian Railways are working to make your journeys enjoyable by enhancing your travel experience with us. You are at the centre of our strategies and policies. We have taken a number of initiatives to make your travel experience much better.
We were faced with many challenges. Years of underinvestment led to overstretched infrastructure, inadequate carrying capacity and huge unmet passenger demand. It was important to spend on infrastructure to remove bottlenecks, provide more trains, decongest current infrastructure, facilitate economic growth.Speed,punctuality etc will improve due to investments in infrastructure augmentation. Non rationalised passenger fares and cross subsidisation by freight revenue led to strain on financial health.
The challenge was to convert the vicious cycle into a virtuous cycle which needed reforms at all levels.We took this challenge and built strong foundation and have solid plans ahead
We believe in rolling promises in motion and we have already realised a number of initiatives announced in Rail Budget.We have improved decision making process and empowered employees through delegation of powers.
Some of our achievements among many others are:
Infrastructure:
- A capital expenditure of Rs. 94,000 Cr in 2015-16 against 2009-14 annual average of Rs. 46,000 Cr
- 2828 kms of broad gauge lines commissioned in 2015-16 against 2009-14 annual average of 1528 kms
- 1730 kms of electrification completed in 2015-16 against 2009-14 annual average of 1184 kms
- 545 kms broad gauge lines commissioned in North Eastern India in 2015-16 against 2009-14 annual average of 110 kms
- Joint ventures established with state Governments to multiply infrastructure creation
Passenger Focus:
- Introduction of Deendayalu Coaches for general class passengers
- Single person accountability for all facilities on a train
- One of the world’s cheapest travel insurance for our passengers. At a cost of only 92 paise one can get insurance of up to Rs. 10 Lakh
- Water vending machines at stations
- Reserved accommodation capacity increased to 44.7 Cr from 37.1 Cr
- Launch of Janani Sewa: Provision of baby foods at stations
- Clean my Coach service for on board housekeeping service
- Community partnership for beautifying stations
- Complaint resolution through social media, dedicated helpline numbers
- New train products : Tejas, Hamsafar, UDAY, Antyoday catering to different requirements of our passengers
Transparency:
- Largest ever online recruitment exam conducted with over 94 lakh applications
- 100% E-procurement of goods implemented to ensure transparency
Speed:
- India’s fastest train Gatimaan Express launched
- Trials of Talgo trains capable of running at 200 kmph successfully completed
HR Initiatives
- Key result areas defined for ensuring accountability, objective performance appraisal
- Transparent process in key appointments, transfers, promotions
- HR audit done for right sizing
- Online portal ‘Nivaran’ for employee grievance redressal
- Mass mobilisation programs like Swachhta Saptah conducted
Technology:
- Collaboration between India and Japan on Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed Rail project
- Collaboration with global players to co-create best-in-class technology and effect modernization of Indian Railways
- High speed Wi-Fi at 70+ railway stations across India in partnership with Google
- Best-in-class technological solutions for project management and monitoring
- Collaboration with premier educational institutes for technology diffusion in Indian Railways
- Leveraging technology to ease passengers by providing services like E-catering, E-wheelchair etc
- Upgrading IRCTC website handling capacity to 1,20,000 number of simultaneous users
Ticketing:
- Sale of tickets through ticket vending machines
- Ticket booking through international debit/credit cards
- Cancellation of PRS tickets through cell phones
Freight:
- Port congestion charges and busy season surcharge dropped
- Dual pricing policy of iron ore withdrawn
- Siding policy liberalised
- Time tabled freight services introduced
- Container sector opened up for more commodities
Though we are happy about our achievements, we are not satisfied. Our endeavour to improve travel experience for you will continue. Some among many other initiatives which we are working on are:
- Redevelopment of stations into world class modern terminals
- A five year investment plan of Rs. 8.56 Lakh Cr for infrastructure augmentation
- More structural reforms and creation of new organizations to keep pace with the changing requirements
- We are giving a big push on enhancing non fare revenue through advertisings, leasing out of spaces etc
- Mission ‘Zero Accident’ to further improve safety on Indian Railways
- Improved port connectivity to stimulate trade
- Two Dedicated Freight Corridors to be commissioned by 2019
- All capital cities of North Eastern states to be connected with broad gauge line by 2020
- Making Railway tracks 100% human waste discharge free through use of Bio-Toilets
- We are working on the target of 1000 MW solar power generation in next 5 years
- Establishment of Rail University as a holistic knowledge centre for Railways
- Sale of UTS tickets through handheld terminals and bar coded tickets
- LED luminaries at all stations
While we continue on our journey to transform Indian Railways, we seek your cooperation. Together we can make Indian Railways, the pride of India.
I wish you and your family again, a very Happy Diwali and Chhath Puja.
May this festive season bring more happiness and cheer in your lives
Yours,
Suresh Prabhu