New Delhi, Mar 17 (PTI) Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday hit out at opposition MPs in the Lok Sabha for creating a “false narrative” that the Railways was no more for the poor and asserted that 70 per cent of all rail coaches were general.
Vaishnaw also rejected suggestions that safety was not a priority and said a lot of investments have gone into making trains and rail travel safe.
Responding to a debate on demands for grants for the Railway Ministry, he also said that the Railways has saved Rs 6,000 crore by shifting from diesel to electric energy to run trains.
The House later approved the demands for grants for the ministry for 2026-27.
Opposition’s cut motions were rejected by a voice vote.
Vaishnaw said that the national transporter has become the second largest cargo carrier in the world.
He said that during the tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, 35,000 km of railway track has been laid while 27,000 km has been electrified.
He said while staff cost is the biggest expenditure of the Railways followed by energy.
He noted that in coming times diesel locomotives will fade away making way for electric locomotives.
Vaishnaw said since the Modi government came to power in 2014, politics of performance has taken over from politics of vote.
He said that in a visionary decision, PM Modi had decided to merge the railway budget with the general budget which has led to increase in financial allocation for his ministry.
Now, new trains are inaugurated and new projects are launched throughout the year, which was not the case earlier. Railways’ financial health has increased and so has transparency in publishing accounts, he said.
Vaishnaw noted that the Finance Ministry and other agencies keep a tab on monetary health using IT systems.
As many as 210 MPs participated in the debate which lasted two days. PTI GJS NAB NAB KVK KVK
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