Railways offers 55% concession to passengers, spends big on subsidy, says Minister
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday said that Railways gives a concession of 55 per cent to its passengers and last year spent ₹ 62,000 crore on the subsidy.
The minister, who arrived in Bijnor on Tuesday on a two-day visit, said: “If the expenditure of the Railways is ₹ 100, then only ₹45 is charged from passengers.”
Last year, Railways gave a total subsidy of ₹ 62,000 crore to different categories of passengers, he said.
Asked about any plans for new trains, Vaishnaw said there are under construction EMU trains, which are being built on the lines of the metro, which do not have an engine but are powered by the second or the third coach.
The same arrangement will be made in mainline EMU trains also, he said.
Vaishnaw, who is also the Minister for Communications, said that the 5G service of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) will start in October.
The service is targeted to be launched in five major cities of the country in the next 500 days, he said.
Vaishnaw said that the government has given ₹ 1.64 lakh crore to strengthen BSNL, which has been asked to focus completely on customers.
(With inputs from agencies)