Clearing the air over the privatisation of India Railways, which has been opposed by several leaders, Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said that the national transporter will not be privatised and it will always be with the government. He added that private investment should be encouraged for more efficient functioning. The country can progress towards high growth and create more employment opportunities only when the public and private sectors work together, said Goyal.
"Indian Railways will never be privatised. It is a property of every Indian and will remain so,” the minister said.
Speaking on the Demand for Grants of Ministry of Railways 2021-22 in Lok Sabha, Goyal said: "It is our endeavour that Indian Railways has become the engine for the country's future growth."
No passenger has died in any rail accident after March 2019, Goyal added, "We are focusing on passenger safety. I am happy to say that there has been no passenger death in the past two years (2019-2021). The last death due to a train accident happened in March 2019," the minister told the Lok Sabha.
Goyal also informed that the Central government has hiked investment in railways to ₹2.15 lakh crore in 2021-22 fiscal, from ₹1.5 lakh crore in 2019-20 fiscal.
He said, whether it is the economy, the convenience of passengers, or any other area, the government is listening to the demands of everyone with sensitivity, and understanding their requirements.
"I want to clarify that Indian Railways will not be privatised and it will remain with the government. It is the property of the Indian government," Goyal said.
The Minister then said that roads are also the property of the government but does anyone say that only government vehicles will run on the roads.
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"Should not the railway line be tried? When it comes to private investment, it should be welcomed," he said, adding that government and private vehicles should also run on the railway tracks to provide better services and better freight services.
Goyal said that to make the Indian Railways future-ready, a national rail plan 2030 has been made, adding that the railways have put 68 projects in the critical category, 58 projects have been put in the second phase of the critical category.
It was reported that railways is considering having private firms run 90 train stations and is searching for several options including looking at the arrangements at India’s privately-run airports – to determine how best to set up the security infrastructure at these.